Surrendering
by C.K. degu
Summary: When Yusuke and Keiko need a surrogate, Kurama introduces them to someone who graciously steps in. It's not screwed up to like your the woman having your friends' baby, right? KuramaxOC, YusukeKeiko
1. Proglogue

**A/N: **I originally read a part of this story over at Freedom of Speech, but since the site and the author are both MIA, I decided to write it myself, with some twists. If anyone can direct me to the original author of Surrendering, I would be eternally grateful. I credit the original plot to the writer, and the characters to whoever they belong.

**Surrendering**_  
Prologue_

"Seriously Kurama, you didn't have to do this," Keiko insisted, her cheeks still burning as Kurama drove down the highway. It was nearly three in the morning, and after

foolishly playing a drinking game with the guys, Keiko had ended up drunk without a ride while her supposed fiancee was passed out on a floor or a toilet somewhere. Seeing as she had work the next day and Kurama was the only one rich enough to have his own car, the gentleman had offered to drive her home.

"I was going to pass by the area anyway," Kurama answered, "my mother gets quite upset when I'm not around by breakfast."

"Lucky for me you're such a Mama's boy," Keiko giggled as they continued down the street. There were very few cars in the area, so Kurama could afford to speed up a little.

Although he hadn't lived at home for at least three years now, his mother insisted he come over for breakfast, or lunch or dinner almost every day. Seeing as he worked for his stepfather's company, it was never that big a deal.

"One more stoplight and we'll be on your street," Kurama pointed out, the car puling to a stop as the red light signaled them to a pause at the intersection. Keiko sighed and leaned back on her chair.

"Good," she said. "'Cause I gotta get to work. Weddings don't pay for themselves, you know."

"I thought you and Yusuke decided to just have a small ceremony at a church," Kurama asked, looking at his near-incoherent passenger. Keiko made a very undignified noise and waved a hand.

"Puh-leaze," she said. "I only say that because I want him to start getting ready for our life together. I fully expect to get knocked up by our honeymoon, and given the fact he might have magic demon sperm-"

"Er-"

"Oooh, green light, go!" She exclaimed, slamming a hand on the dashboard as Kurama promptly stepped on the gas pedal.

He barely noticed the car careening right at them until it had already slammed against Keiko's side of the car.


	2. Zero Trimester

**Surrendering**_  
Zero Trimester _

Yuna entered the room in a gust of air, and the entire one bedroom apartment seemed to gasp to life when she came in. She switched on the lights and the entire place hummed as she put on some music. Singing along as she made dinner for herself, Yuna Hwang poured herself a bit of wine and ate her dinner alone, as she had for the last seven years..

Sipping her wine, she cleaned up her plates and utensils and hummed along as her playlist continued to drift around the apartment. Going over to her bag, she pulled out a glittery, thick piece of paper and stuck it on her refrigerator door with a magnet, smiling at the child's crayon scribbles and glitter. The kids at the preschool had done arts and crafts that afternoon, and Miyo, the five year old with the most adorable dimples, had insisted she take the art home. Yuna loved her job as a preschool teacher, even if it did sometimes remind her how solitary she had designed her life to be. A single bedroom apartment, a job that only had her interacting with young children...it was lonely, but she was pretty content.

Switching on her laptop, Yuna sighed and began to write in her blog. She chuckled at herself as she read some of the comments on her latest blog post on how to be more socially adept. This was as much social interaction as she had in the evenings. Yuna had quite a following on her blog, people found her advice helpful and hilarious at the same time and she enjoyed giving it as much as she enjoyed reading how people loved it. Well, at least her Creative Writing degree was going to some use. Tonight she was writing tips on living a frugal life, as she still had a large sum to pay back in college debt. To tell the truth, teaching at that preschool was the only way her twenty five year old self could pay the bills on her too-expensive apartment. She loved kids, and kids seemed to love her. That was all the school really needed.

_Here's hoping you're doing something worth starving for_ Yuna wrote, the words flowing right off her fingers. _Love always, Miss Advised. _Her laptop was off by nine. By nine thirty, she had run out of things to do.

"Are you sure this water's sanitary?" Her adorably cute but terribly paranoid five year old student Myra asked her with a raised eyebrow the next day. Yuna swears that she had never met a kid so suspicious and curious at the same time. Myra seemed to enjoy learning about new things, but never really liked it when she wasn't in her comfort zone. Yuna laughed and pat her head. The girls' immense vocabulary never ceased to amaze.

"Myra, it's just a little pool. Go in," she coaxed and the student shrugged and joined her other classmates in the inflatable pool the teachers had set up in the backyard of the school. The summer sun was beating down a little warm this July week, so the kids came in their swimsuits and slippers, spending half of their day in the water. Miyo came over to Yuna all wet and giggling as he held up one of the daisies that used to be planted in the back of the lawn area. He blushed as Yuna accepted the flower, wrapping the child in a big, fluffy yellow towel.

"You're so sweet!" She exclaimed, making him giggle as she blew into his cheek, which made the fart sounds that Miyo loved so much.

Sending him off with one of the other teachers to get dressed and dry, Yuna placed the daisy in a small vase on her teacher's desk. She was about to leave when she spotted someone standing in the doorway, looking into the empty classroom in amazement.

"Wow," the young man said, looking around at the tiny tables, desks, toys and crafts handing from every possible corner. "You know, this room looks a bit scary without kids in it."

Yuna laughed and walked over to him. "Suuichi, I see we're stalking Nami again today," she said in a slightly reprimanding tone. Nami was one of the teaching assistants in the school. A college student, Nami was getting her on the job experience before going for further studies in childhood education. Suuichi Hatenaka was her boyfriend, and a frequent visitor in the school. The kids always referred to him as the video guy. Suuichi was taking up filmmaking at the university, and was never without a video camera. He was empty handed today, though.

"I wasn't stalking her," he pointed out as they walked back to the pool party together. "I actually saw you with Miyo before I came in. You're gonna have to let that boy down easy, you know."

Yuna laughed and bent over the faucet to turn off the water. The kids' families would be picking them up soon, and getting a group of at least thirty kids dried and dressed was no easy feat.

"Anyway, I wanted to talk to you," Suuichi asked. "You have to promise to keep an open mind, and that I only say this because I'm worried about you."

"Not everyone can afford to have rich parents, you know," Yuna joked as Suuichi helped her bring out the kids' towels from inside. This is why she approved of Suuichi hanging around the school. He was always helping out with the kids, and was doing all the worrying about Hana's financial situation for her. She'd mentioned her student loans to him only once, and since then, he always managed to find something she could do to make money to pay off the loan. Yuna had never accepted, though, finding it a bit odd that she would be taking financial advice from a twenty year old.

"Like I said, you just have to hear me out," he repeated, the school bell ringing and the kids running over to where the towels were.

"Help me out here and I'll hear you out," Yuna said as at least three wet kids latched themselves onto Suuichi's legs. Nami came over with the other teachers and they each put the kids in a line, wrapping them in towels and ushering them inside to change. It took at least another hour, but soon the classroom was empty once again, save for Nami, Suuichi and Yuna. They toasted a juice box to their triumph and snacked on some sandwiches Nami had packed.

"So what is this money making plan that you came up with?" Yuna asked, crossing one leg over the other as Nami's eyes sparkled with interest.

"You haven't told her yet?" She asked him, and Suuichi shook his head before turning back to Yuna.

"You like babies, right?" he asked, and Yuna nodded, having no idea what Suuichi was trying to get to. "How about you have one?"

"What? Suuichi, I'm not even married, why would I have one?"

"You're not saying it right, sweetie," Nami said, patting her boyfriend's leg. "And like I said, I hardly think Yuna would ever agree to it, even if it's for us."

"Agree to what?" Yuna asked, almost sounding a bit whiny in the way she asked the two. She eventually made the connection though. "Are you guys looking for a surrogate?"

"Oh, us? No! God no!" Nami exclaimed immediately, waving her hands for emphasis.

"Really? You don't want to have a baby with me that much?" Suuichi asked jokingly and Nami rolled her eyes. Suuichi laughed it off and turned back to Yuna.

"Its not for us," he explained. "It would actually be for friends of Shuu-ani's."

Shuu-ani was what Suuichi called his older stepbrother. Although Yuna had never met him, she was familiar with the guy. Nami was always telling her how handsome and polite and sweet Shuiichi was, and Suuichi enjoyed singing his praises just as much. He practically worshipped the ground his older brother walked on, apparently he had also been the one to convince Suuichi's father to let him go into filmmaking.

"They're looking for a surrogate?" Yuna asked, more curious than ever.

Suuichi nodded. "Thinking about it, really. They're nervous about trusting a stranger. I found out last night. I didn't realize they were having pregnancy complications." He leaned back against the tiny chair, lifting his eyes to meet Hana's. "When I mentioned you, Shuu-ani asked me to...implore if you were interested."

Hearing Suuichi say the word "implore" made Yuna giggle and Nami laugh out loud. Something told her that he was using his brother's exact words.

"And what makes you think I would agree to carry someone else's baby?" Yuna asked, standing up to put the empty juice box in the trash bin. She'd heard enough of Suuichi's money making ideas to maintain a level head about this latest one, although she had to admit, it was interesting.

"Because you need to pay off your student loans," Suuichi pointed out. "And somehow afford that ridiculously overpriced apartment of yours."

"Hey, don't talk smack about her apartment!" Nami exclaimed. "I'll remember that for the next time you decide to get drunk and make it impossible for me to take you anywhere but Yuna's place."

"Thank you, Nami," Yuna laughed. "But Suuichi has a point. I mean, I could use the money..."

But oddly enough, it wasn't the money that intrigued her. Sure, it would be great not to have to worry about student loans, but Yuna was oddly attracted to the idea for different reasons. Somehow in the back of her mind, she always wanted to not feel so alone. Pregnancy would mean she would always have someone with her, no matter how little that someone would be. Maybe having a baby was just the life changing experience she needed to feel less lonely. Nami immediately stood up and grabbed Hana's shoulders. "Are you seriously considering this?"

"No," Yuna said with a shrug. "I'm saying I'll do it."

"What?!" Nami exclaimed, shaking her shoulders. "Yuna, are you that desperate? Because if you need money..."

"It's not just the money, thank you," Yuna said with a smile. "But it'll be nice to have company in the evenings. Plus, if I can help a couple out, why not, right?"

Nami sat back down, shaking her head in disbelief. "I don't know if you're crazy or selfless."

"Great!" Suuichi exclaimed, this time it was his turn to bolt upright from his tiny chair. Nami was glaring at him. "Think of it as a win-win situation, Nami," he told her, like she was the one who was about to carry someone else's baby. "Yuna doesn't spend the evenings writing sad blogs for other sad people-"

"HEY!" Yuna exclaimed.

"She gets the money she needs, Yusuke and Keiko get their baby and everyone's happy!"

Nami crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. "Alright, if that's what she wants." She then proceeded to hand Suuichi a 10,000 yen bill which he slipped into his pocket.

"Seriously, you guys?" Yuna laughed, shaking her head. Those two were so cute together.

When Suuichi first pitched the idea that Yuna would be Yusuke and Keiko's surrogate, Kurama had been pretty sure that she would say no. After all, agreeing to the proposition would only mean that she was after the money, and that wasn't a quality that his friends would have liked to find in their surrogate. But when Suuichi passed along Yuna's contact details to Kurama, and Kurama had passed it to Keiko, Kurama had been surprised at her enthusiastic reply. He off-handedly (and a little sardonically) asked Suuichi about what kind of financial straits she was in.

"She's not desperate, Shuu-ani," his stepbrother pointed out, waving a hand as if it was brushing away his thoughts. "She's just...wants quiet company."

Despite that, Kurama kept a pessimistic mind when he came to the Urameshis' doorstop two weeks later. It was almost four in the afternoon. Yuna Hwang had come over at lunch to meet the couple. Kurama had dropped by to give his support, and quite possibly ready to apologize for sending a stranger into their home. But when Yusuke answered the door, Kurama was surprised at how...hopeful his friend looked. He'd never seen Yusuke so cheery, at least not since the accident. Kurama briefly brushed his long, red bangs away from his face to touch the scar on his forehead. It was a nervous, psychosomatic habit he couldn't seem to shake since that night.

"How was it?" Kurama inquired politely. Yusuke gave him a pat on the back and ushered him inside.

"See for yourself," he said as they crossed the living room of the house. Kurama paused and blinked as he heard an unfamiliar voice joining Keiko's somewhere in the vicinity of the dining room. _Was she still here?_ He thought to himself as he and Yusuke entered the threshold of the dining room. Kurama got his answer as soon as he'd asked himself the question.

Standing by the window, bathed in the mid-afternoon sunlight, was Yuna. Kurama blinked as the world slowed down around him. Her light brown hair fanned around her face in soft, voluminous waves as she turned her head, her chinky brown eyes wide in curiosity at his presence. While all the other girls her age were wearing fishtail skirts and sheer tops, she was dressed in skinny jeans and a striped blue shirt, a printed scarf wrapped around her neck. She looked sweet and so..soft around the edges. No wonder Yusuke and Keiko were so at ease around her. She seemed the motherly type, and nothing at all of what Kurama initially pegged her to be (although that remained to be seen). Her figure was petite and elegant, and Kurama was ashamed to admit that it was what he was looking at when Yusuke made his introduction. The redhead blinked again, and this time she was looking at him expectantly, and Yusuke was chuckling behind him.

"Er...sorry?" Kurama slightly stammered, trying to get his head back in order. This time Yusuke actually laughed and Keiko made the introduction.

"Kurama, this is Yuna," she said gently, placing a hand on Yuna's shoulder as if Keiko hand't only met her that afternoon. "Yuna, this is-"

"Shuu-ani?" Yuna suddenly said, taking both Keiko and Kurama aback. Yusuke gently pulled his wife backwards, shaking his head and let the two interact.

"I see you've heard of me," Kurama said, smiling. Yuna blushed and apologized. Now it was her turn to start stammering.

"I-I've heard a lot about you from your stepbrother," she explained quickly.

"And I've heard a lot about you too, so I'd say we're pretty even," He answered, taking Yuna's hand and placing a light kiss on the back of her hand, keeping it in his when his lips left her skin. "Although I would rather prefer that you call me Kurama. My stepbrother and I's names can get confusing at times."

"Yes, I can see how that would happen," She said, laughing as her cheeks turned even redder. Yusuke suddenly coughed behind them, nudging his head towards the clock that hung by the kitchen. Yuna looked over at him, and then saw the time. She instantly pulled her hand back and made a gasp of surprise.

"Is that the time? I have to go, if I don't leave now I might miss the train," she said, immediately grabbing her purse.

"Oh, please, stay," Kurama found himself saying. Yusuke turned to him with a raised eyebrow and he threw his friend a nervous smile. "I mean...I could drive you home if you like."

Yuna tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. She was already standing by the exit. "No, it's alright. You came to spend the evening with Yusuke and Keiko, right? I'd hate to intrude."

"I'll walk you to the door, Yuna," Keiko volunteered, going over to her side as she smiled up at Kurama. "I'm really sorry," she said to him. "But it was nice to meet you."

"Yes, It was nice meeting you as well," Kurama said. Carla turned to Yusuke, the smile hadn't left her face.

"So Yusuke, I'll see you next week?"

"Yup!" The guy replied, waving a hand as Yuna and Keiko left the room. Once they were gone, he eyed his friend, who was staring a little too intensely at the empty hallway.

"Dude, what the fuck was that?" He asked his friend playfully. Kurama blinked at his companion. "Nothing," he answered. "I was merely being friendly."

"Yeah, well if you were ever that 'friendly' to Keiko, I would have punched you in the dick," Yusuke said, disappearing into the kitchen for a second, only to reemerge with two open bottles of beer. He handed one to Kurama.

"Is that sort of talk really appropriate for someone who's about to be a father?" The redhead asked as Yusuke narrowed his eyes at him.

"Don't change the subject, assface," he said. "I mean, I bug you for years to go find a girl to flirt with and get laid, hell, maybe you can even marry her, and here you are being 'friendly' with the one girl Keiko and I need untouched by a man."

Kurama chuckled nervously and shook his head. "I have no excuse."

"I'll drink to that," Yusuke said, clinking the neck of her bottle against Kurama's before swallowing his beer. Kurama took a sip. "And if this baby pops out with red hair after nine months..."

"Relax Yusuke," Kurama laughed. "It was just a little bit of flirting. I promise I won't lay a hand on her."

Kurama watched his friend pull out one of the chair from the dining table, take a seat and looked up at him with a raised eyebrow as he swallowed his drink. Kurama did the same. "You don't believe me, do you?" He asked, getting a little tired of trying to convince his friend that he wasn't going to pounce on his surrogate. Sure Kurama had a bit of a reputation as a ladies's man, but this seemed different.

"I don't," Yusuke said. "I've never seen you so distracted than you were around Yuna. I'd be an idiot to believe you."

At this point, Kurama didn't know what to say. Yusuke sighed and put down his beer bottle, ripping the side of the label with his thumb, staring intently at the motion.

"But listen," he said, his voice dropping volumes as the conversation turned serious. "I think you of all people know how important this is to Keiko and me. Especially Keiko. You saw how sad she was when we found out we couldn't have kids," Yusuke said, his thumb turning white as he picked on the label. "After the accident, I was just glad that she was okay. But when I found out...it killed me inside. It wasn't that I was upset with her. God knows, I love her and would no matter what. I was upset with how upset she was with herself, as if it was her fault." He lowered his eyes. "This baby means the world to her. I want it to be as safe as possible. I wouldn't be able to cope with her pain if something happened..."

Kurama's hand flew to his scar again, and Yusuke pretended not to note the motion. He knew Kurama only did that whenever he felt guilty.

"I'd never do anything to endanger your child, Yusuke," he said. "You and Keiko deserve to have this child, and I would never to anything to jeopardize that. Besides, I hardly think Yuna is the type to throw herself at a man's feet. Or that anything that fast can develop in nine months, if I do decide to pursue her." Kurama leaned back against his seat. "This baby is important to me too. If anything, my liking her only means that she will feel more comfortable."

A small smile spread across the dark haired man's face. He turned to his friend.

"Thanks man," he said, clinking their beer bottle again before he finished his in one last gulp. At this point, Keiko had returned to the room.

"Really, Yusuke?" She asked playfully, taking his empty bottle from the table. "It's not even sundown yet."

"Kurama and I were just having a toast," Yusuke explained, jumping up and following her towards the recycling bin. "To you, me and our new surrogate." He wrapped his arms around Keiko's waist and she sighed a little.

"I did like her," she admitted. "She really seems to want to do this for us."

"Does Kurama know how to pick 'em or what?" Yusuke asked, kissing his wife on the lips. "We're finally getting our baby."

The realization seemed to have an effect on Keiko, as she smiled, nodded and cried into Yusuke's shirt. Before either of the men could ask what was wrong, she shook her head.

"These are happy tears," she explained, laughing as Yusuke let her wipe her eyes on his shirt. Kurama smiled and twisted the half empty bottle in his hands. It looks like they didn't need his moral support after all.

The next few weeks seemed to fly by in a blur. In between doctor's appointments, hormone shots, a meeting with a lawyer and getting to know Yusuke and Keiko, Yuna was surprised to find it was only two days away from her date with a turkey baster, which Nami had marked as 'D-day' on her calendar.

"Is that the date?" Yuna asked, chewing her nail as she stared at the glaring red ink on the calendar. Nami pulled Yuna's hand out of her mouth as Suuichi placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Yup," he said. "In about two days, you're going to be knocked up."

.

Earlier that day, Kurama had told her that she only had one shot at this. Yusuke and Keiko had put most of everything they had on this one date, one chance to have their child. Yuna stared at the ceiling and closed her eyes. For the first time in what felt like a long time, she prayed that this would work. Not for herself, but for the couple who deserved much more than what the world was giving them.

On D-day, Yuna woke up in a pretty positive mood. The sun was shining, and it was warm, which she loved. It was a little too early do anything yet, but Yuna went to her closet to choose her clothes. Dressing up was one of those things she enjoyed doing, and it made her feel good knowing she was wearing something nice on such a virtually life-changing day. She opted for a lace dress with a pale yellow lining on the inside, wearing it with cream sandals. She weaved her hair into a wispy French braid and proceeded with her usual morning rituals. The doctor had asked her to go his office at eleven am, and so Yuna grabbed her bag to leave her apartment at ten thirty, planning to walk to the the train station. She opened her door with a flourish, only to gasp in surprise as a tall redhead blinked down on her, his hand halfway to the doorbell.

"Kurama!" she exclaimed, jumping a little. Kurama smiled apologetically.

"Sorry," he said a little hastily. "I didn't mean to startle you. Were you on your way to the doctor's? Wait, of course you were. I'm actually here to pick you up."

He said all of this so quickly that Yuna barely understood a word of it, but she nodded slowly in understanding. "O-kay?" She said hesitantly and Kurama seemed to regain his cool.

"Shall we go?" he asked. Yuna followed him to his car, a sleek powder blue sedan that was parked in front of her building. She giggled a little and pointed out that the blue clashed with his hair color. Kurama chuckled and said he'd never noticed that before. They got into the car and Kurama started driving, Yuna humming along to the song playing from his iPod.

"Wow," she said, leaning back against her seat. "You are probably the only living, breathing person I know who listens to Kishi Bashi."

"And you're the only living, breathing person I know who recognized him," Kurama said with a chuckle. "I have very...eccentric music tastes. My friends would rather just sit in silence than play songs from my iPod."

Yuna actually laughed out loud that that. "The kids at school fall asleep when I start playing my music. People in my blog always seem confused when I try to make song recommendations."

"Oh, I've read your blog," Kurama said, "Someone from work sent me a link to your entry on grocery shopping and I thought it was pretty funny, and what you said about there never being anything that you ever really need is so true. I always end up buying something else from what I had originally intended to get."

"Really?" Yuna asked, this time turning on her side to face him. "I could never imagine you getting sidetracked on a trip to the mall."

"Well, contrary to what my stepbrother tells you, I am still human," he said this with more sincerity than anything. "Oh, as well as what you said about salesladies."

Yuna laughed again. She never imagined Kurama saying an unkind word about anyone, at least, not in the way Suuichi had depicted him to be. His reference to her own words salesladies as 'sharks ready to pounce on the nearest piece of meat' was probably the meanest thing she would ever hear him say.

"That's it," she said, sitting properly again, facing the road this time. "I am convinced that you are practically the most perfect human being on earth," she said this with absolute finality, like anything Kurama would have told her to the contrary was moot.

"I hardly think-"

"Kurama, you're driving a stranger almost halfway across town to a clinic so that she could get inseminated with a friend's baby," Yuna explained. "If that's not perfection, I don't know what else is."

"Well, I am on Team Baby," he joked, pulling to a stop as a red light prevented them from crossing an intersection. "It's part of my job."

Yuna noticed that Kurama had brushed his bangs away from his face, although it never seemed to bother him before. He had this look on his face that she couldn't quite understand or read.

"Kurama?" she asked, sensing something underneath the cheery surface of those bright green eyes. "You have that look on your face. It's the same look the kids from school get when they know they did something wrong but just don't want to admit it."

Kurama chuckled and watched the cars whizz by right in front of them. "I guess It would he hard to lie to you," he said. It was the middle of the day, and yet the feeling was exactly the same. It felt like he was in that night again. "I was driving Keiko home," he began, his fingers tracing the lower rim of the leather steering wheel. "We were celebrating something at a friends' house and she needed to go home so I naturally offered her a ride," He said, realizing that this was the first time he had told this story in full detail. Even his mother had gotten an abridged version. "I had just seen the green light and crossed the intersection, just like this," he said as their car lightly sped to the other side of the crossing, continuing on its way. "I think I already saw the car coming, but I paid it no attention and crossed anyway."

Carla gasped a little as she surmised what had happened next. "Keiko had gotten the worst of the damage. If you notice, she still limps a bit when she walks, because that's where she was hurt the most. Bits of shrapnel had stabbed her, and she was in the hospital for weeks. I have this to remind me," he said, showing her the scar underneath his mass of red hair. He stiffened a little as he felt Yuna's fingers brushing against the healed scar. "She and Yusuke found out that she couldn't carry a child a little later after. I've always felt responsible for that."

To Kurama's surprise, Yuna didn't say anything. Most people would have told him that it wasn't his fault, or reassured him that there was nothing that could be done, but she said nothing. He didn't know if he liked that. She was looking down at her lap, biting her lip. Kurama pulled up to the parking lot of the clinic, shutting the engine off before asking Yuna if she was okay.

"I'm fine," she reassured him. "I'm just...praying that this goes well for Yusuke and Keiko." she placed her hand over his and squeezed a little, much like his mother would. "It wasn't your fault, Kurama."

Kurama was suddenly overwhelmed with...stirrings for this girl. He couldn't quite understand it himself. But whatever it was, it was stopping him from asking her out on a date right then and there. "Why are you doing this?" he asked suddenly. "I don't think you are the kind to do this solely out of monetary reasons, but you owe them nothing, you have no guilt or burden to carry. Yet you seem to honestly and fervently wish that this goes well. Why?"

Yuna smiled and pulled her bag closer to herself. "I've always been alone, Kurama," she explained to him. "So I kind of understand how Yusuke and Keiko feel, to have something...missing from their lives. Every day I try to understand it, but I can't find anything that seems to fill that void. They know exactly what they need. They just need a little help getting it."

Without another word, Yuna emerged from the car and waited for him to follow her to the lobby of the hospital, where Yusuke and Keiko were waiting. The couple had nervous faces, Yusuke pulling Keiko close and planting a kiss on the top of her head as Kurama and Yuna made their approach.

"Kurama," Yusuke said. "Why am I not surprised."

The redhead only grinned at his friend as Keiko and Yuna exchanged kisses on the cheek. "So," Kieko sighed. "Are you ready?"

"Yup!" Yuna said enthusiastically. "Let's put your baby in me!"

The three laughed as they entered the hospital, ushered by a nurse into one of the doctors' offices. Yusuke had just opened the door when they were met with large shouts of 'SURPRISE!,' making Yuna jump backwards into Kurama and Keiko's body turn stiff. The men didn't even seem slightly fazed as five heads crowded around them, giving them hugs and exclamations. Luckily, they seemed to be the only people in the room at the moment. When Keiko hugged the other girls and Yusuke punched the arm of the tall carrot-topped man, Yuna instantly knew that these were their friends, a ragtag group of personalities. The girl with powder blue hair in a baby pink kimono regarded her standing in front of Kurama. "Oh!" she exclaimed, pointing. "Are you..."

"Yup!" Yusuke exclaimed, weaving through the small crowd to stand next to Yuna and place an arm around her. "Guys, this is Yuna, our baby mommy. Yuna, the guys."

"Hi," she said shyly, as the girl in the pink kimono shook her hand excessively. Yuna couldn't look away from her bright lavender eyes.

"Hi!" she exclaimed. "I'm Botan! You are just so...cute! I mean, I can totally imagine you pregnant, is that a bad thing?" She asked this last question to Kurama, whose answer Yuna didn't catch. Next to her, and excessively tall pretty brunette in what looked like a pantsuit looked at her from head to toe.

"Wow," she said, the actual word was more enthusiastic than her tone. "Keiko really knows how to pick 'em. You've got a nice aura around you."

"Thanks?" Yuna asked, not knowing how to take that.

"This is Shizuru," Kurama explained to her, and the brunette nodded.

"I'm going out for a smoke," she said, promptly leaving the room.

"Hey! I thought you promised you wouldn't smoke until the baby comes?" The tallest guy in the room asked, his voice almost reverberating off the walls. He saw Yuna and Kurama looking at him and held out his hand.

"Nice to meet you, Yuna," he said politely. "My names' Kuwabara Kazuma. This is my wife, Yukina," he said, indicating the tiny girl with seafoam hair and bright red eyes.

"We're so glad you decided to do this Yuna," Yukina said enthusiastically, her soft spoken voice the polar opposite of her husband's. "This way, our babies will only be a few months apart!"

At this, Yusuke immediately coughed and nudged his head towards Kurama, who followed his gaze to the shortest man in the room. Almost a quarter of his height was made up of his spiky dark hair, a burst of white exploding in the front. Upon hearing Yukina's voice, his face took on a feral, almost murderous quality, while Kurama immediately pulled him away from the Kuwabara, who he was standing next to. Yuna was a little confused, but she had very little time to hear an explanation as a nurse had emerged from the door, blinking at the large number of people in the office.

"Miss Hwang?" she asked, making eye contact with each person in the room. When Yuna stepped forward, her face relaxed a bit. "We're ready for you."

So much of Kurama wanted to be the one to accompany her to the door, but Yusuke and Keiko did that for him. He couldn't hear what they were saying, no matter how hard he strained his ears, but everyone saw Keiko suddenly envelop Yuna into a hug, the girl reciprocating until they both let go. Yusuke gave her a smile and a pat on the shoulder, then Yuna disappeared behind the door. Keiko suddenly became a nervous wreck and had to be led to a chair. Kurama paced the room while Yukina sat down with Botan.

"Urameshi, aren't you supposed to be in there with her?" Hiei suddenly asked. "Just what is so difficult about fucking, anyway?"

The three guys blinked, exchanging looks. "I guess I was supposed to be the one to explain this to him?" Kurama asked, looking at his comrade for confirmation.

"It usually is," Yusuke shrugged as Hiei's frown deepened.

"Oh, could you explain it for me too, Kurama?" Yukina aksed. "I'm afraid Kazuma didn't explain it very well when he told me."

"This is going to be interesting," Yusuke said, leaning back against his chair, an arm around Keiko's shoulders. Kurama was giving him a look, like he couldn't believe that he had to do this. "Do go on, Kurama," Yusuke asked as Kurama sighed and shook his head.

As Hiei and Yukina were learning about the delicate process of insemination, Yuna was having a very surreal experience of it. After all, it wasn't very often that one sat on a bed with stirrups in a hospital gown, looking at a petri dish of little embryos. There were five, the doctor had told her, each one having a twenty percent chance of survival. It was those odds that were making her nervous. This mishmash of 20% successes was Keiko and Yusuke's only shot. She looked into the petri dish again, not entirely sure what she was looking at.

"Uhm...Hello teeny embryos," she said, using her indoor voice to speak to a petri dish. "This is Yuna speaking. I'm not your mom...or your dad. I'm just a...uh- temporary place where you can grow a little bit more before your mom and dad can meet you.

"Listen, can we make a deal? I promise I'll take really good care of you...you know, in utero if at least one of you guys...stick. Your parents really, really want to take care of you, but until then...you have me."

Just then, the doctor entered the room, smiling at her as she saw what Yuna was doing. "Just relax, Miss Hwang. You're going to be fine. Now, can you lie down and put your legs up on those stirrups?"

About an hour later, Yuna was sanding on her own two feet, her legs shut and biting her lip. The doctor placed a hand on her shoulder and laughed.

"You can walk, duckling, it's fine. You should be able to take a test within two weeks. Please call me as soon as you find out."

Yuna nodded mutely as the doctor led her out the door. She expected to feel terrified, a little nervous, but oddly enough, Yuna felt...excited. The butterflies on her stomach actually felt like a good thing. The emerged to the waiting room where she heard peals of laughter coming from the waiting party. Kurama was trying to explain something to Hiei and Yukina, and the scene reminded her of herself in a classroom. The two students were sitting down and looking up the redhead who was making gestures and saying things while Kuwabara actually leapt across the room pretending to be...something.

"So, you see it's their egg and sperm...but she's not the one who will have the baby," Kurama explained, his voice wavering as he wasn't sure if his students could understand. Yuna actually giggled from where she was standing and he looked up at her like he hand't expected to see her there at all.

"Yuna!" He exclaimed, dropping the model of what seemed to be a womb upon seeing her at the door. All eyes were on her as she smiled and waved at them like she had just walked up to them.

"Uh...hi?" she said awkwardly, but the expectant looks from the other didn't seem to change. "Oh, they said I should know in a couple of weeks."

Keiko visibly relaxed for a second, and Yusuke rubbed her back affectionately. Yusuke then declared to the others that they would have to reconvene exactly two weeks later, when Yuna would take a pregnancy test. Not surprisingly, everyone had agreed.

Those two weeks of waiting were similar to mental torture for Yuna. Just not knowing what was going on with her own body was mind boggling. She'd taken to standing on her head before dinner, as advised by one of her readers, just to encourage the embryos to stick. But a few days before she was supposed to meet the others, she was playing a game of touch ball with the kids when the ball hit particularly hard on her chest and felt incredibly tender after. A part of her hoped it had nothing to do with the ball. Every time she felt dizzy or tired, she was secretly elated.

"Why don't we have lunch first?" Kuwabara suggested, towering over the others. It was exactly two weeks later, and the couple looked worse for wear than Yuna. Kurama has been gracious enough to pick her up like he did the day she got inseminated.

"Moving on the girls as always, Kurama," Shizuru had teased, chewing on nicotine gum. It looked like she was finally taking her promise seriously.

"I am merely being polite," Kurama pointed out.

"Yeah, if you were ever being polite to Yukina like that, I would have punched you in the face," Kuwabara said. Kurama shook his head. They didn't get it. She was different.

Yuna noticed that there was a hint of lipstick on Kuwabara's cheek, although he had tried to wipe it off. "There's a nice curry place a few blocks away that Yukina and I really like."

Everyone seemed to like that idea, as it was noon. So they split up into the number of cars that was available, Yuna getting a ride with Kurama with Hiei joining them. They stopped in front of the street and Kurama said he would be right back as he walked to wherever it was that he parked. Yuna was walking right next to Hiei when he looked at her and asked,"Should you be walking?"

"Uh...yes?" Yuna asked, as if confused with the question. "Why wouldn't I?"

"I thought they just injected a baby into your crotch."

"Oh, uh...it's not going to fall out like that," She assured him. "At least I think it's not."

"Huh."

At this point, Kurama had arrived with the car, inviting the two to get in. Hiei claimed to not trust anything being driven by a 'stupid fox' and left, preferring to walk. Yuna found it a little strange, but said nothing as she got into the passengers seat slowly, not wanting to jog anything. She took a deep breath as Kurama peeled out of the driveway. She asked him if they could stop by a pharmacy to buy a pregnancy test. They did, and she bought five different ones. She had just finished telling him how there were actually different kinds of pregnancy tests, and how she eventually decided on the five when Kurama decided to notice the pink elephant in the room.

"So...how are you feeling?" He finally asked as they pulled up to the parking lot of the restaurant. Yuna could see Shizuru speaking to a waiter about the number of people who were coming in. She sighed and leaned back against the seat.

"Hmmmm," she said slowly as if she was really considering her answer. "A little normal? I guess? I mean, I expected to feel different but I don't. I just keep wishing that this would work."

Kurama said nothing, but neither of them seemed to want to leave the car yet. Yuna sighed and rubbed her arms with her palms.

"Oh, are you cold?" Kurama asked, about to turn off the air conditioning, but Yuna stopped him and shook her head and assured him that she was fine.

"I'm from Korea, did you know that?" She suddenly asked him. Kurama looked at her with his big green eyes and shook his head. Yuna giggled.

"Yeah. I lived in Seoul until I went to university here," she explained. "When I first came here, I could barely speak a word of Japanese, and I didn't feel like I ever really...belonged anywhere. Even now I still feel like there's something missing from my life. I've been living with a kind of loneliness that can make anyone go crazy."

"Is that why you agreed to do this? Because you wanted company?" Kurama asked. Yuna looked down at her hands, although she was still facing him.

"At first, that's why I agreed. But this is too important to Yusuke and Keiko. Now I feel a little selfish for even thinking what I did."

In order to console her, Kurama placed a hand over hers. He noticed that tears were brimming her her eyes, a manifestation of her own guilt. The next thing Kurama knew, she was on his shoulder,seeking comfort form him. He felt his arms wrap around her, and he pulled her into his arms. It felt so natural and so easy to hold her, to have her trust him to wholeheartedly with what she felt. Then, as he had somehow anticipated it, Kurama found that his lips were inches from hers. She seemed a little more surprised than he was that they were at such an intimate position, but her eyes closed anyway, and she was moving closer...closer...

The loud and sharp sound of a a car horn snapped the two out of the moment. Kurama turned and saw Yusuke's car pulling up right behind them, the former detective jamming his hand into the horn quickly. Yuna blushed and left the car quickly with Kurama following behind her. He led her inside by placing a hand on the small of her back. The heat still hadn't quite left her cheeks and they joined the others inside. Hiei was already there, glaring and waiting.

"How did he-" Yuna said and Kurama reminded her that they still stopped by the pharmacy. Keiko sat on Yuna's side and Yusuke sat on the empty seat next to Kuwabara, who was holding a menu.

"Took you guys long enough," he said. "I'm starving!"

"Sorry," Yusuke said, grabbing a menu. "There was a holdup at the parking lot." He then made an effort to glare at Kurama, who pretended not to notice.

A couple of hours later, the food had been ordered, served and consumed. There was not one person on that table who wasn't a little light headed from laugher (even if Hiei was doing a pretty damn good job of making it look otherwise). They talked about the old days, about days to come. At some point, Yuna came back from the bathroom, placing a hand on Kurama's shoulder and whispering something into his ear. He seemed surprised for a moment and asked her something, but he eventually nodded and let her leave. Nobody had noticed this exchange until Botan saw the time.  
"Guys, it's been three hours," she said to the couple, who immediately looked at the now empty seat.  
"Where did she go?" Keiko asked, looking around the restaurant if Yuna was still there. There was no sign of her anywhere and Keiko seemed a bit worried. Kurama looked at his phone as it informed him of an incoming text message.

"Keiko," he said, turning to his friend. "Yuna just texted me to let you know...you're about to become a mom."

The brunette blinked her big brown eyes for a moment, as if confused by Kurama's statement. Then the words seemed to finally sink in, and her heart swelled up with emotion. She was crying and hugging everyone at the same time, jumping up and down with Botan when she practically ran to her. When she finally reached her husband's strong arms, her legs gave out and she and Yusuke fell to the floor laughing and crying at the same time. Kurama smiled and texted Yuna back.

"Congratulations~! The couple is elated at the news. I am too. :)"


	3. First Trimester

**Surrendering  
**_First Trimester_

About a few weeks later, Yuna was on her knees, continuing on with her pathetic love affair with her cool porcelain toilet. She had been sent home from the preschool today, the other teachers thought she was coming down with a flu and sent her home before any of the kids could catch it. If she wasn't busy bending over the toilet and puking her guts out, Yuna would have laughed and joked about how pregnancy wasn't contagious.

This was all that had happened to her as of late. Since the stick (and its four other friends) had turned a bright shade of 'pregnant,' she hadn't really felt any different. What was happening to her right now was reminiscent of what would happen to someone who had particularly bad food poisoning with accompanying dizziness that was par for the course of any hangover. Yuna noticed she was eating a little bit more, even at midnight she found herself chowing down on cereals, only to throw it all up after. It hadn't quite sunk in yet that she was basically a vessel of life, as Kurama had put it the other day.

Speaking of Kurama, the house was never as quiet as it used to be since he'd announced that she was pregnant. Keiko came over practically every day to ask her how she was, and she usually ended up being the one to make Yuna tea to come with the crackers she would bring. Other days Yusuke would come over, saying he was just 'passing by' and leaving stomach-friendly foods that Keiko had asked him to bring. They were both incredibly sweet about it, and Yuna appreciated that they were actually opening up to her. The other day, Keiko was telling her about how she and Yusuke fell in love, a tale that was as funny as it was romantic.

On the days where neither of the couple could come over, another one of their friends would come by for a chat or tea. Botan had already seen the inside of her apartment thrice, Shizuru twice, and Yukina and Kuwabara once. Yukina had been quite soothing, as she was the only one who really seemed to understand how bad Yuna was feeling at the moment, since she was three months ahead.

Then, there was Kurama. Yuna wasn't exactly sure what was going on between the two of them and honestly, neither did Kurama. She just didn't have the time or energy left to think about it, and so she just let the chips fall where they may. He came over as often as he could, usually to stay in and watch a movie with her, eat dinner (making it himself on more than one occasion) or just sit up and talk. He was also there to hold her hair back when she was throwing up, or hand her the toothbrush after.

One day, while Kurama sorted and measured out ingredients for a parmesan chicken, he heard Yuna yelp in surprise from inside the room. Worried that something was wrong, the redhead immediately barged in, finding her standing in front of her mirror. She turned to him in surprise, her shirt lifted, exposing her belly to him.

"What's wrong?" he asked as she looked at the mirror again, rubbing her hands over her stomach in slight disbelief.

"Kurama, look at this," she said, indicating her body. "There's already a bump!"

The bump looked more like a little pillow had been stretched over her stomach, but Kurama could see it clearly from the side. "This is crazy," she said, unable to keep her eyes off her stomach. "I mean I'm only what, five weeks along? This is big, isn't it?"

"I don't know," Kurama said, walking closer to her. "I have to admit that I know very little about pregnancy and childbirth."

"I've seen some teachers at the school," Yuna said. "They're never usually this big when they're a little over a month along. Maybe I just got fat."

Kurama actually laughed at that. "Impossible."

The following day, he showed up at her door, his arrival marking this third visit of the week. Yuna's eyes went a little wide as she saw the huge number of books he was carrying with him.  
"Do you need help?" She asked him as he awkwardly made his way into the apartment, the books he was carrying were almost up to his chin. He managed to shake his head as he carefully placed the literature on Yuna's coffee table, stepping back when he'd done it.  
"What is all this?" she asked him curiously, bending to take a look at the books' titles. "What to Expect when You're Expecting, Yoga and the New Mother, So You Got Knocked Up? Oh gosh, Kurama did you-" she asked, running a finger down the stack of books. She looked up at him and raised an eyebrow. "Did you buy all of this?"  
"No," He chuckled, sitting down on the couch and catching his breath. "Half of those books were ones my mother read when she was pregnant with me. The others are ones I purchased for Keiko and Yusuke so they can prepare for their baby too. This one," he said, pulling out one title from the large stack. Yuna read the title as _Battle Royale. _

"This one is for light reading."

"Ugh, I'll take Battle Royale over any of this at the moment," Yuna complained.

"I've been reading a bit," he told her. "There are pictures of women's bellies on a weekly basis and-"

"Oh my god," Yuna said, immediately flipping to the page to where she currently was, her fifth week. The woman in the picture was barely showing at all! "I knew it. I am fat," she grumbled, grabbing the first book, _What to Expect_, off the pile and sitting next to Kurama on the couch.

"Not necessarily," Kurama pointed out. "You could be having twins."

"I have to throw up," she said, putting the book aside and making a beeline towards the bathroom.

Yuna knew that there was a reason why she was holding off reading the baby books. She was only on her sixth week when she started absolutely freaking out. She had been pretty good at hiding it too. Nobody really noticed anything was wrong until Nami saw Yuna hanging back while the kids played a round of hide and seek in the playground.

"What's up, Yuna?" Nami asked, coming to approach her senior. "You love playing hide and seek with the kids. I mean, that's the whole reason Miyo's so in love with you because you saved him when he tried to hide up that tree."  
Yuna bit her lip and watched as Shari finally found the last child and they were all just scrambling to get back to the base. Yuna pulled her shirt lower over her skirt, hoping nobody would notice her bump. She could swear that it got bigger in a week, which only added to her freaking out.  
"I know," Yuna answered with a sigh. "I mean, I would love to join the kids but...the books all say that the first trimester is the most risky. I could lose the baby if I'm not careful."

After saying that, Yuna felt a chill run up her spine, like she knew that something was about to happen. She looked at Nami, who looked a little worried.  
"Please don't tell your boyfriend I just said that. If you tell him then he'll tell his stepbrother who will freak out and..."  
"And what? Make sure you come to your senses and chillax?" Nami asked, raising her eyebrow.  
"Just don't tell him, please?"  
"Too late," Nami laughed as Yuna's cellphone rang. Yuna saw who was calling and her eyes widened in surprise. _When did Nami even-? _Sighing, she pressed a button on her phone and tried to act nonchalant.  
"Hello?" She asked, still keeping her eyes on the kids.

"So my brother tells me you aren't playing with the kids in school?" Kurama asked, the phone tucked in between his chin and shoulders. He was currently neck deep in paperwork, his stepfather was leaving for a business trip the next week and they needed to give him status reports on all accounts before he did. But when he'd received his stepbrother's text message, he immediately called her. His worry was getting the best of him.  
"Yeah, I've just been a little tired from dating my toilet," she told him as a chime rang out behind her. It was time for the kids to go inside for science experiments.

"That's not what I heard," Kurama countered, signing a document one of the interns had passed to him before turning to his computer to continue typing up a report.

"Alright, so you caught me," Yuna confessed, being led by the hand into the classroom and pushed in at the same time. "I'm just...a little scared, that's all."

There was a pause on Kurama's side of the line. Yuna took that moment to give one of the kids a kiss on the cheek and tell Nami that she was going to finish her phone call in the hallway. Kurama meanwhile, finished up his final report, which made him exhale.  
"Well, that was a trying day," he said with an odd chuckle, which made Yuna think that his day had been anything but that. "I'll come and pick you up. Shall we have dinner at that spaghetti place you like?"  
"Kurama, you know how I can barely keep anything down."  
"Soup and crackers it is, then," he said, his tone of voice becoming much more relaxed. "I'll pick you up in an hour. Preschool should be over by then, yes?"  
"Uhm...yes?" Yuna asked, slightly confused. What did this fox have up his sleeve?

Exactly an hour later, as Yuna was waving goodbye to the last child to get picked up from school, Kurama's car pulled up at the front of the school. Suuichi had come over to pick up Nami and he raised his eyebrows when he saw his brother's ride.

"What is he doing here?" He asked Yuna as Kurama walked over to them with a big grin on his face and his work jacket slung to one side.

"Well, you called him, remember?" Nami asked, giggling as she ushered Suuichi to leave, telling Yuna to have fun. Kurama came up to her and saw his stepbrother leaving.

"How often does my brother come here?" He asked curiously as he looked in the direction where Suuichi and Nami had gone.

"Too often for my tastes," Yuna said, shaking her head as she seemed to recognize the tall figure in front of her for the first time. "Uhm...I'm just going to get my stuff from inside the classroom, do you want to come in?" She asked, feeling slightly ridiculous. This wasn't a date, and she wasn't asking if he wanted to come into her apartment. But it sure felt that way.

"Sure," Kurama said, following her into the building, saying nothing as she led him into her classroom. "Actually," he said as Yuna ducked towards her cubby hole to get he bag. "Would you just like to stay here?"

Yuna paused halfway to grabbing her bag. She looked at Kurama and blinked.  
"What did you have in mind?" She asked him.

A few minutes later, they were sitting across each other in the middle of the classroom. He'd bought soup and crackers from a deli near his office. Yuna had seated them on the carpet she and the kids usually used for circle time. Kurama had never really noticed the bump she had exclaimed over until then, when she was sitting Indian style in front of him. There it was. Yusuke's baby. If anything, it made him like her even more. There was just an aura of warmth around her, like he couldn't help but feel safer around her. He knew that he could open up to her, and she would understand every part of him. It was that kind of openess in her that Yusuke had trusted.

"Is everything alright?" she asked, and he nodded.

It was only mid afternoon, and the entire classroom was bathed in a rosy, orange glow. Yuna sipped her soup and crackers slowly, thankful that nothing seemed to want to come back up her throat just yet.

"So," Kurama said, putting down his bowl for a moment. "About this fear."  
"Yeah," Yuna answered, sipping her water. "I realize that it's totally your fault."  
"My fault?" Kurama asked, trying not to laugh out loud. "How is it my fault?"  
"You and your baby books!" Yuna said, shaking her head. "I was perfectly fine, not freaking out about all the 'dangers that can befall every expectant mother' until I read those books! Now every time I leave the house, I keep wondering if I'm doing anything that can hurt the baby. Sometimes when the kids hug me I panic because I keep thinking that I'm only on my second month and the baby can just... fall out!"

Kurama laughed, shaking his head apologetically ask he noticed Yuna glaring at him. "Sorry," he said to her. "It's just that I think it's wonderful that you're so concerned over the well being of the child. But you need to relax and trust that everything's going to be fine. Those books aren't meant to scare you. They're meant to help you deal with every crazy little thing that's about to happen to you."  
"It doesn't feel like that," Yuna whined. Kurama smiled and took her hand, squeezing it.

"Trust me on this," he said. "You'll be fine."

He noticed she looked a little uncomfortable, seeing how he was holding her hand like that. Kurama was about to pull his hand away in embarrassment when Yuna stopped him. "No, wait," she said, pulling it back. "I like this," she confessed, her cheeks flushing bright red. "But you squeezing my hand made me want to pee, so would you just excuse me for a second?" She asked. Kurama actually laughed and nodded before Yuna got up and left the classroom.

Kurama started getting worried about a minute later, when Yuna still had not returned. He was sure she had mentioned that the bathroom was just near the classroom. Worried that something had happened, Kurama burst out of the bright and sunny room, making it to the bathroom just was Yuna emerged, her face as pale as a ghost, her entire body shaking.

"Yuna, what's wrong?" Kurama asked, immediately checking her for injuries or bleeding. He could smell blood, but where was it coming from? Yuna immediately grabbed Kurama's arm, her firmness of her grip shocking him.

"We have to go to the hospital," she said, her voice shaking a bit. "I...I saw blood a-and.."

At this, Kurama sprung into action, his mind already reeling with a plan. First things first. "It's going to be alright, Yuna," he said, letting her lean a little against him as her knees began to feel weak. "You're going to trust me, right?"

She nodded mutely, and she and Kurama slowly made their way back to the classroom, where Kurama sat her down on the beanbag chair by the door, making her take deep, calming breaths as he got the car. Within moments, they were at the hospital.

"What seems to be the problem?" A strict, heavyset nurse asked them as they came inside the emergency room, Yuna refusing to take a step bigger than an inch.

"She's two months pregnant," Kurama quickly explained. "We found blood."

The nurse nodded and got a wheelchair for Yuna and admitted her. While they performed a series of tests on her, Kurama called Yusuke and Keiko. He found her in one of the hospital beds, almost immediately retreating as he saw the gynecologist sitting in between her raised legs sans underwear.

"Holy f-," He said, and all eyes in the room immediately turning to him. Yuna wanted to die. The doctor, who was a woman, thank god, laughed as Kurama shielded his eyes and walked towards Yuna's covered up half.

"Oh please," she said. "Don't even pretend that this is the first time you've seen your wife from this angle. Now Yuna, darling, I am just going to put this little device through you, okay? The baby's too small to be seen with other means, and we have to make sure that he or she's okay in there."

Yuna nodded, neither she nor Kurama really bothering to correct the doctor's assumptions. This would not be the last time they would do so. Her hand found his, and she held on to it tightly. Kurama kissed the back of her hand to reassure her. Then she gave a slight yelp, like she wasn't sure how to react at the object being thrust up her vagina.

The doctor turned to the monitor beside her and looked at the screen for a moment, the moment seeming to last forever as it did. Yuna felt so confused at the rush of emotions that were coursing through her at the moment. She was still embarrassed that Kurama had to see all of this. She was terrified that something had gone wrong and that the baby would not longer be there and she still wasn't sure how to feel about this particular medical procedure.

The doctor seemed satisfied and nodded to herself as she pressed a button on the monitor in front of her. "Alright," she said. "Good news is that you're fine, my dear. This kind of thing happens most of the time, but it's good that you both came to a hospital. Have you had your first appointment with your OB yet?" she asked, patting Yuna's knee. The girl shook her head and quickly explained that the appointment was scheduled for next week. The doctor nodded and vaguely said something about letting her OB explain it for her.

"I'll let you stay here for a couple more hours just to make sure," the doctor said. "But you should be able to got home after. Congratulations on the pregnancy, the both of you," she finished, flashing Kurama a smile as she left the exam room. Yuna finally let go of Kurama's hand and leaned back, removing her legs from the stirrups. Kurama looked visibly relived as well.

"Didn't I tell you everything was fine?" he asked her, and she only nodded before she burst into tears, the kind that had her crying out loud and covering her face with her hands. Kurama actually panicked for a moment when Yusuke and Keiko burst into the room, both seemingly breathless.

"What..what happened?" Yusuke managed to ask as Yuna continued crying, waving a hand as if to tell the others she was fine. Kurama looked at the couple and assured them that everything was fine. "Yuna's just a bit...overwhelmed."

"Oh, Yuna," Keiko said, immediately taking Kurama's place at Yuna's side. Kurama stood next to Yusuke, who was glaring at him.

"We need to talk," Yusuke said brusquely, nudging his head to outside the room. Knowing that Yuna was in better hands with Keiko, Kurama followed Yusuke to the hallway.

"Kurama, what are you doing?" Yusuke asked, looking like he was trying his hardest not to lose his cool. "I thought we established that you were not going to let your crotch lead your perfectly good head? You're making this whole situation more fucked up than it should be."

"Yusuke, please calm down," Kurama said. "I haven't made move on her."

"Really? So you just happened to be there when she needed to go to the hospital? Don't lie to me, Kurama, it's insulting."

"She's all alone, Yusuke," Kurama said, trying to keep his voice level. "She can't deal with all of this by herself and I can be there for her. She needs me. To some extend I feel like I need her too. I care deeply about her, but as I said before I would never do anything to jeopardize your chances of having a baby."

Yusuke glared at his friend, his arms still crossed over his chest. Kurama looked away from his friend's hard brown eyes completely focused to trying to see if he was lying.

"God, if you weren't my friend I would have called you out on your bullshit," he said, shaking his head. "Fucking fantastic that I know you aren't lying to me. Christ, why did it have to be Yuna? I mean, I'm happy for you and everything but damn."

"I know," Kurama spoke, a sigh he didn't know he was holding falling out of his lips. "I'm sorry."

Yusuke pat a hand on Kurama's shoulder. Then the two reentered the exam room, where Yuna looked infinitely better. Keiko was smiling as well.

"So...everything's okay?" Yusuke asked, deferring to his wife. He wasn't sure how to address Yuna at the moment. Keiko laughed. "Yes, Yusuke, everything's fine."

"We'll take you home," Yusuke offered.

"If it's alright with you, Yusuke, I'd like to be the one to take Yuna home," Kurama interrupted. "I mean, if it's okay."

"Oh. Yeah, sure go ahead," the brunette said, trying not to hide a smile as Kurama stood next to Yuna, helping her off the exam table. The couple was just about to leave when Keiko called out to Yuna. "We'll see you at Dr. Kawamura's office next week, okay?"

Yuna smiled and nodded. "Okay. See you then!" she chirped happily as Yusuke and Keiko walked out of the hospital hand-in-hand. Yuna smiled, sighing at the two.

"Were they always that affectionate with each other?" she asked Kurama who smiled and shook his head.

"In truth, I never actually thought that Yusuke would be so devoted to Keiko," he confessed. "But as it turns out, he loves her just as much as she does him."

The two sat in silence for a moment before Kurama asked if Yuna wanted to go home. The girl nodded and started gathering her things. Soon enough, they were on their way to her apartment.

"Uhm...about what you saw earlier.." Yuna asked, at which Kurama actually laughed and shook his head to dismiss her thought.

"It's alright," he said to her. "It was my fault, just barging in like that. I'm, sorry. How are you feeling?" he asked, briefly turning to glance at her as she gathered her thoughts.

"Well, I'm better now," she said. "What happened back there kind of made me realize the gravity of my situation. I actually care about this baby, and I want to do everything I can to keep him or her safe. I think the baby was telling me to just relax too, if that's weird."

"Not weird at all," Kurama assured her. "Didn't I tell you everything was going to be fine?"

Yuna nodded and acquiesced that indeed, Kurama had told her that everything was going to be fine.

They reached Yuna's apartment building soon enough, Kurama walking Yuna to her door. "Listen," Kurama said, stepping a little closer to her. "I just wanted to tell you. I'm here for you. I want to be the one you rely on for these things, because I really care about you, and I care about this baby."

Yuna looked up at him. "Are you saying...you want to be the surrogate daddy?"

Kurama laughed and placed his hands on her still tiny waist. "If that's what you want to call me, yes. I'll read all the books and take all the classes. I want to be there for you."

Then he placed his forehead against hers, their lips coming down to meet in a soft and sweet kiss. A kiss that, in both their opinions, had ended too soon. Kurama grinned at her and she smiled back.

"I'll see you in the morning, love," he said.

"Mhm," Yuna replied, her cheeks flushing pink as she entered her apartment. Once Kurama was gone, she leaned against her door and looked up at the ceiling.

"Wow," she said to nobody in particular. "Wow."

The following week, Yuna had her appointment at the obstetrician's office. It felt a little odd, sitting there in the waiting room with two people, that until two months ago, were total strangers. And now she was having their baby. She felt a sudden rush of love for the couple, who were holding hands. Yusuke was nervously bobbing his leg up and down, his hand tapping his knee at the same time. Keiko was calmly reading a magazine, but she occasionally bit her fingernails. Yuna rested her chin on her hand and waited, watching a little kid playing in the corner while his mother was speaking to someone on the phone. He smiled up at Yuna and waddled over to her, placing a ball in her hands.

In an impressive display of dexterity, Yuna juggled the ball for the child, which made him laugh. Yusuke and Keiko watched the exchange briefly before a nurse said that Dr. Kawamura was ready for them. Yuna handed the ball back to the little boy and followed the two to the doctor's office, where Yusuke and Keiko would wait while they performed some tests on her. The techs were pretty quiet as they took Yuna's blood, height and weight and performed an ultrasound similar to the one at the hospital.

Moments later, she rejoined the couple in the doctor's office, the doctor in question holding a folder of Yuna's test results. She seemed pretty chipper, so Yuna wasn't too worried. She was, however, unprepared for what the doctor said when she sat down.

"Well, it seems that one shot you had worked better than we thought!" Dr. Kawamura exclaimed happily. "Two eggs are better than one, I always say."

All three heads swerved right at her and looked at her with wide eyes.

"What do you mean, two eggs?" Yusuke asked. "Like...twins?"

"Exactly!" The doctor exclaimed, opening her folder to find the sonogram photo and placing it before the three of them. "Here and here," she said, making circles on the photo with the tip of her pen. "Mono Di, from the looks of it. Isn't that exciting?"

When she looked up at the three, she would tell that exciting wasn't exactly the word they were thinking of. Yuna was just staring at the photo, blinking at it like it would just disappear at any moment. Keiko was as white as sheet, her hands frozen to the arms of her chair. Yusuke was currently squinting at the photo, as if trying to see if the doctor had just made a mistake. Dr. Kawamura thought it was best to just continue. "I heard about the incident at the hospital," she said, sliding the picture over to Yusuke so he could grab it. "It's perfectly normal to have a bit of bleeding at the beginning, but call me if it happens again, alright Yuna?"

The girl blinked up at her and nodded.

"Good. Now, would you like me to tell you your due date?" she asked Yuna, who seemed to be the most respondent of the three at the moment. She nodded. Dr. Kawamura looked over her files for a moment and ran her perfectly manicured finger down the piece of paper in front of her.

"Given the date...you're due on April 15th. Oh, how lovely, spring twins!" She exclaimed, smiling. "Let's get you some pre natal vitamins and schedule your next appointments."

Kurama arrived at Yuna's door right after work, rapping his knuckled gently on the door. They never really discussed anything since their kiss the week before, but he had taken to coming over almost every day now, arranging little 'dates' inside and outside the house. Today, however, he was surprised to see that Yuna answered the door with a puffy nose and splotchy eyes, dressed down in her sweatpants and house slippers. She look exhausted. Kurama noticed her loose white shirt bunched up slightly where her stomach was. He wondered briefly if that was normal.

"Is everything okay?" Kurama asked, stepping inside while she went back to the couch, which was overflowing with fluffy white pillows. He sat on one end, looking over at the girl who seemed a bit reluctant to speak.

"Come on, Yuna, you can tell me," Kurama coaxed. "I'm here for you, remember?"

That seemed to get to her, because Yuna sat up and threw her arms around him. Kurama reciprocated the hug, rubbing smooth circles on her back until she let go. He held her hand and traced circles on the back of her hand with his thumb. "How was your visit with Dr. Kawamura? Is everything copacetic?"

Yuna gave a laugh that was almost a little bitter. Kurama wasn't sure if it was because he'd said copacetic or if it was something he didn't say.

"Oh yeah, everything's great," she said waving a hand as if to shoo him away. "The babies are doing just fine. I'm due on April 15th, did I tell you that?"

Kurama furrowed his brows. "Did you just say babies?"

"Yup. Having twins. Currently freaking out," she said, about to put her hand to her lips to chew off her nails but Kurama pulled it hand away before she made contact. He chuckled.

"But that's great news, isn't it?" he asked. Yuna looked at him, as if a little surprised. Two seconds later, she was crying. Kurama panicked slightly and asked her what was wrong.

"See, that's how a normal person is supposed to react!" She exclaimed, her voice wavering as she wiped away her tears with her shirt. "When I found out that it was twins, I was so happy! But..Kurama, you should have seen the looks on Keiko and Yusuke's faces. They seemed upset, like they didn't want to have the twins."

Yuna buried her face in her hands for a second. She placed a hand on her slightly swollen stomach. "It made me wish, for just a moment, that these were my babies. I could love them, and take care of them, and actually be happy."

"You don't mean that," Kurama said, pulling her closer so she was leaning against his chest. Yuna had calmed down somewhat, following his breathing for a moment.

"Maybe I don't," she said.

"I think Yusuke and Keiko were just shocked," Kurama explained, rubbing a hand on her back. "They were pessimistic about this because they had only one shot. I don't think they were prepared to hear that it worked so well."

Yuna actually giggled. Kurama smiled and lifted her face to his.

"There's that smile," he said. "You're really pretty, you know."

"And you're a pregnophile."

"...a what?"

"You're like a pedophile, except you prey on the pregnant instead of the kids," Yuna giggled, reaching forward and kissing his cheek. "I like it though."

"Hey, I'm not a pregnophile," Kurama argued with a laugh. "Need I remind you that I started to like you the first day I met you, and you weren't pregnant then."

Yuna smiled and a blush crept up her cheeks. "Really?"

"Really," Kurama smiled. "You're different from the other girls I usually meet. You have the biggest heart, Yuna. You never seem to run out of love, even for those who think they don't deserve it," he said, his lips curled up a little in a mischievous smile. "Besides, I knew you couldn't resist my magnetic personality-"

"Oh god!" She exclaimed, pulling away from him to laugh. She ended up resting her head on the opposite side of the couch, her legs splayed out in front of him. Kurama leaned forward and kissed her bump, crawling a bit so he was on top of her. Yuna blinked up at him with big, brown eyes as if asking him what he was doing. Kurama simply smiled and kissed her, running his tongue under her lower lip.

Suddenly, the phone began to ring. Exhausted, exhilarated and slightly nauseated at the moment, Yuna shook her head to instruct Kurama not to answer the phone, keeping her eyes closed, as if fearing she might throw up right then and there. The man smiled and placed a blanket over her exposed legs, disappearing to the bathroom to wash his hand. The answering machine beeped, and Yuna immediately recognized Yusuke's voice, smiling slightly when Kurama almost tripped.

"Hey Yuna, its Yusuke," he said, sounding a little awkward over the phone. "About what happened at the doctor's...we're really sorry. We must have freaked you out, huh? But honestly, we're thrilled. I mean, we had so little hope of actually having one baby, and now, we get to have two...anyway, I gotta go. See you soon."


	4. Second Trimester

**Surrendering**  
_Second Trimester_

The next thing Yuna knew, she was four months pregnant. A little under twenty weeks down, a little over twenty weeks to go, Kurama had joked. The morning sickness and the dizzy, tired spells had gone the second she arrived at her second trimester, and she was glowing. Her stomach was definitely showing now, the kids at the school fascinated at how their teacher managed to eat so much in such a short time. Kurama always seemed to catch Yuna rubbing her hands lightly over the top of her bump when she was thinking, which worried him and warmed his heart at the same time. The teachers at the school kept telling her that she must be having twin boys, as she was 'carrying high.' To which she would only smile and remind them that the sonogram wasn't until later in the week.

Kurama was at her apartment almost every day now, usually ending up sleeping in the guest room when he got too lazy to leave. There was always something for them to do, if it wasn't reading pregnancy books or watching Lamaze classes online or having their own fun, they usually ended up just staying up and talking for most of the night. Kurama told her about his mom, how he'd met Yusuke, Hiei and Kuwabara. Yuna, meanwhile would tell him about her family in Seoul and her craving for ddeok, hotteok and other Korean dishes. Kurama did his best to satisfy her cravings, while Yuna was extremely worried that she was getting fat and that her stomach shouldn't have been that big.

Yukina was already six months along when she'd invited Yuna, Keiko and Botan to go maternity clothes shopping. Yuna, who had recently realized that she couldn't even fit into Kurama's jeans anymore, had jumped at the chance. She met the three at the entrance to the mall, surprised at how big Yukina was. It was a little terrifying to see such a small person walk around with what seemed like such a heavy bundle. She'd guessed that Yukina was just as big as she was, but considering Yukina was the tiniest person Yuna had ever met, and that Yuna was actually carrying twins, she couldn't help but wonder why Yukina wanted to spend an entire afternoon walking around and trying on clothes. Yuna certainly felt like she wouldn't be able to do it.

But it was Botan who had first seen her, gasping out loud and giving her a hug.

"Holy cheese, Yuna, you're huge!" She exclaimed, putting her hands over Yuna's swollen belly, rubbing it. "Hello Urameshi twins! It is me, your Aunt Botan!"

"I don't think the babies can hear you yet," Keiko giggled, coming over to give Yuna a hug. "How are you feeling?" she asked, which was the question Keiko asked her almost every day. It was a big thing to Yuna, who until recently, had never had even a goldfish to share her emotions to. Keiko was an expert at understanding her crazy, hormonal self, and was especially empathic when it came to Kurama.

"Like my boobs are going to explode out of my bra," Yuna answered worriedly, unabashedly grabbing her chest in the middle of the mall. "They never used to be this big...or sensitive. Oh, and the other day, one of the kids drew a picture of me. They put a watermelon as my stomach since according to them, it's the only thing big enough to look like this," Yuna frowned, patting her belly. Keiko had to laugh.

"I think it's cute that the kids are so emotionally invested in you," she said, pushing her forward. "As for your breasts, it's nothing a new bra can't fix."

"And I'm sure Kurama is enjoying them as much as you do," Botan teased, immediately making Yuna blush as the entered the first maternity store they saw, Gingersnaps. Botan immediately ushered Yukina towards the pastel colored dresses at the back of the store while Yuna lingered towards the wide leg maternity pants that were on sale. Keiko followed behind her, as if feeling out of place.

"So how are things with you and Kurama?" She asked Yuna, who was testing the waistband of one of the jeans.

"Pretty good," she said, holding on to the pants. They were ripped, stretchy and half the price. How could she not love them? "We're just hanging out."

"Are you really?" Keiko asked, raising an eyebrow at her. Yuna wasn't sure why, but there was something about the way Keiko glared at her that let her know she was busted.

"You're not having sex, are you?"

"Oh, god no," Yuna said, walking towards the shirts. She needed something white, and she needed it in size humungous. "I mean...we have fooled around a lot...and then some..."

"Oh god, please spare me the details," Keiko said, sticking out her tongue and shaking her head, Yuna laughed, expecting her to make a cootie shot next or something. "But have you guys talked about your relationship? Because I hate to be preachy, but it's a little messed up."

"Oh my god, it is, isn't it?" Yuna asked, guilt suddenly smacking at her face and weighing her down. Keiko saw tears brimming her eyes as she stopped in front of the sheer kimono vests and held back her sobs. "Oh my god, it's so wrong! I'm pregnant with _your _babies! He's your friend! Oh god, Keiko I am so sorry, I-"

"Hey, stop!" Keiko exclaimed, patting Yuna's back and laughing. "Everything in the world is messed up already. And this is a good thing. I can tell that you both needed each other. And Kurama was the one who brought you to us, so who are we to complain?"

Yuna wiped her tears away as Keiko laughed and gave her a hug. "You are so hormonal. Now lets go to the counter so I can get you those jeans."

"What? You don't have to buy them for me," Yuna said, feeling a bit disoriented as Keiko brought her to the counter.

"Why not? They're a steal, and you deserve it," Keiko shrugged handing the saleslady her credit card. Yuna hugged Keiko again as they were handed back the jeans.

"I am so glad I'm having your babies," Yuna said, looking much better. The saleslady smiled sweetly at her.

"You two make a good couple," she complimented, making Yuna laugh as Keiko placed an arm around her and thanked the lady. "You're having twins?"

"Yup, due in April," Keiko said proudly, rubbing her hand on top of Yuna's belly. "You wouldn't believe the looks we get when we tell them I'm the father. But gender reassignment is pretty amazing, right honey?" She asked Yuna who smiled and nodded. They relished the shock on the woman's face as they left the store together, Botan and Yukina not too far behind.

"Oh god!" Keiko burst into laughter, holding on to the wall to support herself while she grabbed her stomach. "That was hilarious!"

"Did you see the look on that saleswoman's face?" Yuna asked, laughing as well. "Oh my god, we have to stop! Stop Keiko, I'm going to need to pee again!"

By the time Yukina and Botan asked what was so funny, Yuna did have to pee again. After picking up a full length dress at another maternity store, Yukina declared she was exhausted and Yuna immediately concurred. While the two pregnant women sat in the booth of a cute little cafe, Keiko and Botan continued shopping. Yukina hummed a song as she sipped some tea. Yuna smiled over at her.

"Yukina, you're really glowing," she couldn't help but say.

"Oh, no, this is because I'm tired and sweating," Yukina told her, shaking her head. "I can't wait for this pregnancy to be over! Three months still feels like forever," she sighed, resting her hand on her chin.

"Tell me about it," Yuna frowned, taking a bite of her cupcake. "And I still have five to go,."

"Oh no, sweetie, trust me, you want the second trimester to last," Yukina sighed. "By the time you reach the third, you're too big to do anything, you're actually waddling and your husband becomes so overprotective you want to snap his head off..." her voice actually got a little high pitched at the end, which made Yuna's eyes grow wide form behind her decaf cup of coffee.

"Uh, are you okay, Yukina?" she asked, and the woman laughed it off.

"I must be a little tired," she said leaning backwards into her seat. "Kazuma is really a sweet guy. I just wish he wouldn't worry so much, is all."

"Is that why you wanted to go shopping? Because you needed to get away from him for a while?"

"Yes," Yukina said, a little ashamed. "Is that a bad thing?"

"Oh, not it's perfectly normal," Yuna laughed. "I mean, I'm not married or anything, but I think I understand."

"You and Yusuke weren't married when you made the babies?"

"...What?"

"Were back!" Botan exclaimed, arriving at their table with an armload of purchases. She sat in the booth next to Yuna, asking her what she'd ordered. Meanwhile, Keiko slid into the booth next to Yukina, slipping her bangs under the table.

"Oh Keiko I got you something," Yuna said, sliding her hand under the desk and easily picking up something. She passed the paper bag to Keiko, whose eyes grew wide at the store's name.

"You went into Chloe?" She asked Yuna, who smiled and nodded proudly.

"Well, when you first asked me to be your surrogate I thought about getting you a gift so I saved up a bit. They actually had a whole line of these at the store."

Keiko opened the sack containing the bag and gasped.

"Oh my!" Botan exclaimed, realizing what it was. "It's a designer baby bag!"

"Yup," Yuna said proudly. "I thought it was cute."

Keiko examined the bag for a moment before holding it to her chest in a hug. "I am so glad you're having my babies," she said to Yuna, who laughed.

"Let's drink our tea and decaf to that!" Botan exclaimed, clinking mugs with the other three girls who laughed.

After the trip to the mall, Yuna came back to her apartment completely exhausted. She'd declined Kurama's request if he could come over and make dinner. For now, she just needed to close her eyes and sleep without having to think about having him next to her. She hugged her pillows, feeling warm as she closed her eyes.

Three weeks later, Yuna and Kurama were invited for a meal to Yusuke and Keiko's place. Yuna suggested that she and Kurama ought to bring something to dinner, and he proposed they cook some food to bring and spend the day together. The thought of spending an entire day with Kurama thrilled Yuna to no end. Dressing up in her wide leg pants and two loose tank tops, Kurama noticed that there was a smile on Yuna's face that never seemed to go away. He stood behind her as she examined her bump in the mirror, kissing the side of her neck.

"I've never seen you so happy," he commented with a smile.

"Yukina was right," Yuna sighed, rubbing her hands over her distended belly. "The second trimester is the best. I'm starting to feel normal again," she giggled, looping a necklace around her neck. Kurama slid his arm around her, pulling her close to him. She turned and planted a kiss on his lips.

"Thank you," Yuna murmured. "For everything."

Their first top of the day was the supermarket. They had gone to the one in Kurama's neighborhood, because he insisted it would be bigger and that they were going to be cooking his kitchen anyway. They unknowingly found themselves holding hands as the perused the aisles for the ingredients they needed, Yuna pointing out to Kurama the stuff they needed, some she had put in the cart declaring it was a 'must buy.'

"I plan on drinking wine tonight," she declared as they passed the juice boxes.

"Is that safe?" Kurama asked, wrinkling his nose.

"I talked to Dr. Kawamura," she told him, putting a jar of peanut butter and jelly into the cart. "She said just a little bit, occasionally is fine."

"Oh my gosh!" a voice suddenly exclaimed, making Yuna and Kurama look at the source of the voice, a woman who was just in front of them. She was looking at Yuna in surprise. "Are you Yuna Hwang? From the Everything Guide to Everything?"

"Yes," she smiled and nodded. "You read my blog?"

"I devour it," the woman was just about her age, shopping by herself. "Your guides have helped me countlessly, especially How to Be Calm in Public Transport! Such a funny article," she sighed. Then she seemed to really see Yuna for the first time, pregnant and all. Then she also saw Kurama, who was smiling politely at her. "Oh! I didn't realize you'd gotten married."

"Oh, I-" Yuna said, about to correct her when Kurama placed an arm around her and extended a hand towards the fan. "Hi, I'm ."

"Nice to meet you," the fan giggled, shaking his hand before turning to Yuna again. "Is this why you haven't been able to update the site lately?"

"I guess you caught me," Yuna giggled. "I've been meaning to announce it on the blog."

"That's so great! My friends love your blog too, they'll be so jealous if they found out I bumped into you," the fan smiled. "But I'll leave you two to the shopping. You guys make such a cute couple. Congratulations!"

"Thank you," Yuna called after her as she disappeared into the corner. Yuna looked up at Kurama with a raised eyebrow.

"What?" He asked, kissing the top of her forehead. "Did you really want to explain to a stranger that these aren't our babies?" he asked, rubbing the top of her stomach. Yuna sighed and shrugged.

Throughout the course of the trip, at least three more people had commented on them being such a lovely couple and asking if they were excited about having the babies. One of them was also a fan of Yuna's blog. Then Kurama noticed that Yuna's hands barely left her stomach now, the gesture naturally making him worry. She seemed to have much more energy now, no longer bogged down by dizziness and morning sickness. They had just paid for their purchases when Kurama saw someone enter the store and see him. His eyes widened as the woman looked incredibly confused. Yuna was just about to pass the door to the exit when Kurama exclaimed, "Mother!"

Yuna's back stiffened as she realized what Kurama had seen. Suuichi had told her several stories of his stepmother before, how close she was with Shuu-ani, how she'd begun to treasure Suuichi as well. Yuna had hoped to meet her one day, but not like this. Not when she was five months pregnant and holding his son's hand in a grocery store.

"Shuuichi...?" Shiori Hatenaka asked, approaching them unsteadily. "What is going on?"

"Mother," he said, placing a hand on the small of Yuna's back. "This is Yuna Hwang, a...friend. Yuna, this is my mother, Shori."

"It's nice to meet you," Yuna said, smiling and giving the woman a short bow.

"Yes, it's nice to meet you too," Shiori answered. "I didn't know Shuuichi had friends that were married."

"Oh, no she's not married," Kurama smiled. "She's a surrogate for Yusuke and Keiko."

"Surrogate?" Shiori asked, blinking. He nodded and placed an arm around her.

"Mhm," Yuna echoed, wanting to elbow Kurama away so his mother would stop looking at them like that. "They wanted a baby, so I'll deliver."

It was a joke, and Shiori had giggled. Yuna asked if she wanted some company in the grocery and Shiori politely declined.  
"I can see from my son's bag that you are about to make some of my famous Shepherd's Pie," she said, taking a peek into the shopping bag and smiling. "Albeit a lesser version."  
"Mother," Kurama said in a playfully threatening tone, and Shiori laughed. "Plus, I know you have that dinner at the Urameshi's tonight. I'll let you two go on your way."

The couple watched the woman enter the supermarket for a moment, Yuna immediately releasing a breath she didn't know she was holding. Kurama chuckled and pulled her closer to himself, leading her out the door.  
"Now was that so bad?" he asked her.  
"Ask me that when she finds out you've been living on my couch," Yuna joked. Kurama kissed the side of her temple and they walked back to his car together.  
"Shall we make mediocre Shepherd's Pie?" He asked, and she agreed.

Several hours later, they found themselves in the living room of the Urameshi's house. Kurama noted that there was already a crib with a couple of toys set up in the corner, most of the breakables had disappeared, and the drawers and cabinets were baby proofed. "A little excited, are we?" he asked the two, and they smiled sheepishly.  
"We couldn't help it," Keiko confessed. Yuna looked around the house, seeing the changes they had made at bit her lip as an odd pain shot through her chest. Making a face, Yuna shook her head.

"What's wrong, Yuna?" Yusuke asked, as the other two turned to her as well. She shook her head and assured the others that she was fine.

"Here, sit down," Yusuke insisted, leading her to the couch as she smiled gratefully. Kurama frowned at her, wondering what was wrong. Yuna looked a little upset.

"Oh, we haven't set dinner on the table!" Keiko suddenly remembered, pulling her husband into the kitchen. "We'll be right back, okay?"  
Kurama nodded as the couple disappeared into the corner, kneeling in front of Yuna and asking if she was okay.  
"I'm fine," she assured him with a smile. "I think it's just a little constipation or something."

But Kurama noticed that she had at least three more during dinner. It had been quick, a look passing her face that he couldn't identify. Yusuke had been telling them about the renovations to the nursery that they were doing to accommodate two babies.  
"We aren't sure if we want to know the sex of the babies," Keiko informed them. "Although Dr. Kawamura tells us she will know by the ultrasound this Friday."  
"Oh right," Yuna said, nodding. "I almost forgot. Will you guys be coming?"  
"We wouldn't miss it," Yusuke promised. "They're actually going to look like babies now, aren't they?"

"This should be the first time you really get to see them," Kurama said, remembering something he'd read from the books. "Would you know if the doctor's office has 3D imaging?"  
"Dude, you should come!" Yusuke exclaimed. "Let's get this freak show on the road!"

After dinner, Keiko and Yuna stayed in the dining room to eat their dessert. Yuna was finishing off her second slice of cake (one for each baby, she'd joked) when Keiko started talking about the things that still needed to be done in the house.

"Yusuke and I have barely started on the nursery, actually," she confessed. "We can't agree on a color for the walls. He wants something bright, and neon, and I keep telling him that it might freak the babies out but he insisted."  
"You and Yusuke make a good team," Yuna said, taking a sip of her half a glass of wine. "I'm sure you'll have it easy when the twins come."  
"Oh, I hardly think so," Keiko laughed. "I mean, I'm a little nervous. Two babies seems like a lot. Yusuke seems ready. I know he can handle this. But me? I-I dunno."

Another pang crossed Yuna's chest, and it was the worst one yet. She frowned again, but Keiko didn't seem to notice. Then she realized what was happening. Every time she sees how Keiko and Yusuke get ready to have the babies and every time she thinks about how wonderful parents they would be, the pang would hit her. It literally hurt Yuna to remember that she wasn't going to get to keep the babies after. Taking a deep breath to stop herself from crying, she shook her head to get herself together.

"You're going to be a wonderful mother, Keiko," she told her friend, smiling as she looked at her wineglass. "I guarantee it."

Meanwhile Kurama and Yusuke snuck off outside for a beer. Kurama was mildly surprised to see his friend take out a cigarette, light it and puff up.

"Should you be smoking?" Kurama asked, in a slightly harsher tone than he'd intended.

"This is fucked up, isn't it?" Yusuke asked his friend, referring to the cigarette. "It's just that whenever I think about what's going to happen in a few months I freak out, and when I freak out I need to smoke. I'm smoking just one every couple of days now, which is a fantastic improvement but...Shit. I really need to quit." He immediately stubbed the cigarette on the porch, kicking the butt away. "Fuck, Kurama. My kids aren't even born yet and I am screwing up already. I can't stop cursing, I have a beer in one hand and a cigarette on the other, I just quit smoking a second ago...I'm not ready to be anyone's dad! I barely had one, and now I have to _be _one?"

The guy looked like he wanted to kick something, but Kurama just smiled and kept his hands in his pockets. "You'll be fine," he assured his friend. "Just the fact that you're thinking about these things and worrying about them already makes you a better father than most."  
"Yeah, but I can't be just a better father," he said, looking out into the street. "I'm having twins. I need to be the best."  
Kurama chuckled. "I'm sure Kuwabara would love to take you up on that challenge."  
"Yeah, Kuwabara. How does that guy manage to stay so cool?" Yusuke asked, shaking his head. "I mean, I was just hanging out with him the other day and he wasn't freaking out at all, considering Yukina's just about ready to pop."  
"He's normal, remember?" Kurama asked. "If there was any of us that was going to get out of this unscathed, it's Kuwabara."  
"Tell me about it," Yusuke said, shaking his head in slight disbelief. He sighed. "Look at us. Me and Kuwabara are actually gonna be parents...you're actually in a monogamous relationship."  
"Thanks," Kurama said with a chuckle.  
"And Hiei...well, nobody really knows what the fuck he's up to. But he's grown a little. You can tell by the way he actually sticks around now. God, we're getting old."

"I'll drink to that," Kurama said, leaning against the railing of the porch and clinking his half-empty bottle of beer against Yusuke's.

On the day of the ultrasound, Yuna was running late. It was one of those days when she wasn't feeling happy that she had about a ten pounds of extra weight on her, and was feeling very slow and very sluggish. Kurama was being patient, sitting calmly on the couch as she scurried about the house, trying to find something to wear. She finally managed to throw on a light, loose dress, thick tights, a jacket and heels (one one thing she insisted she wasn't going to give up). It was the early beginnings of December, and the temperatures were dropping as quickly as Yuna was gaining weight. Kurama watched her throw on a scarf and smiled as she slung her bag over her shoulder and looked up at him, slightly winded.  
"Ready?" He asked her. She glared at him and they went to his car, heading right for the doctor's office. Yusuke and Kieko were already waiting for them inside, and they didn't seem to happy with each other at the moment.

"What's wrong?" Yuna asked, already sweating under the three million layers of clothes she had on. Why was the office so warm? She immediately swallowed down the juice that the nurse had given her for the procedure and sat next to Keiko.

"Yusuke is being stupid," Keiko concluded, crossing her arms over her chest. "I told him I didn't want to find out the sex of the babies. He does."  
"Holy-uhm...why don't you want to find out?" Yuna asked, suddenly hit by a sudden urge to go to the bathroom. Kurama looked at her from across the room, looking over a magazine as he was sitting next to Yusuke, who was frowning.  
"Because I want at least one thing to be a surprise," Keiko sighed. "I barely get to experience anything in this pregnancy, and I have to know right away what my babies will be?"  
"Mhmmmmmm," Yuna said, attempting to cross her legs, but it was impossible with her stomach getting larger. She snapped her knees shut. She knew that if she went to the bathroom, she had to do this all over again, but this was getting to be torture. Kurama looked like he wanted to laugh, seeing her dilemma, and she just glared at him.

"Oh wow," the woman sitting beside Kurama gasped, making both Yusuke and Kurama jump and look at her. "Aren't you two just the cutest couple? You must be what, two months along?" She asked, patting Kurama's leg like it was totally normal. Yuna, Yusuke and Keiko began to laugh as Kurama blushed profusely. Yusuke placed an arm around Kurama and smiled at the lady.  
"Yes, we're really excited," he said. "This one couldn't keep her hands off me until the stick turned pink!"  
"Yusuke, stop or I'll have to pee!" Yuna exclaimed, leaning against Kieko's shoulder as she laughed. Kurama furrowed his brows at her as the woman looked thoroughly confused. He was just about to explain to her what was happening when the nurse called Yuna's name. All four of them stood up, Yuna telling the others to hurry up because she really really really need to pee. Kurama helped her on to the exam table, pinching her arm playfully.

"What was that for?" she asked him as they waited for Keiko and Yusuke who said hello to Dr. Kawamura.  
"That was for laughing at me," he said.

"You get mistaken for a girl a lot," she pointed out. "Shouldn't you be used to it by now?"

"Alright, let's get this show on the road!" The medical technician exclaimed as Yusuke and Keiko entered the room. She looked at the small crowd in slight confusion.  
"Okay, what is this?" She asked them brusquely. "I see too many mommies and daddies in one room."  
"Oh, surrogate," Yuna said, pointing to herself, "Surro-gees," she pointed to Yusuke and Keiko. "Boyfriend," she finished, pulling Kurama's sleeve. The technician studied the four for a moment.  
"Alright," she said. "That's a little messed up, but who am I to judge? Are you ready to see your babies?"  
"Yup!" Yuna and Keiko chimed. The technician laughed and asked Yuna to lift up her shirt. She squirted a bright blue gel on her stomach, and Kurama saw she got goosebumps because of the cold.

"Alright, and here we go," the woman said, taking the Doppler wand and spreading it all over Yuna's stomach. Kurama's eyes widened as he heard the babies' continuous and whooshing heartbeats, one overlapping with the other in what Kurama thought was a wonderful symphony. Yuna leaned back, closing her eyes for a moment and smiled. Keiko noticed she did this at each sonogram, like she was listening to a wonderful song. The technician moved the wand around the swollen area of her belly, pressing some buttons and biting her lip in concentration.

"Alright," she said, taking one last glance at the monitor. "You, boyfriend. Hold this wand in this spot, will ya?" Kurama obediently took the wand, holding it in the spot.  
"Great. Here's a live look at your twins," she said, turning the monitor so all four could see. Keiko's eyes actually filled with tears at the sight of them. The screen showed shadows and images of two babies. The both of them looked like they were sleeping, with closed fists and their backs facing the monitor. Each of the babies seemed to be moving around in what seemed like such a tiny space, the one on the right moving its arm while the other moved it's foot. The technician helped guide Kurama's hand so they could see each baby up close. Keiko leaned against Yusuke's shoulder, smiling. Kurama kissed Yuna's hand. It was an amazing sight. The technician noted that the babies had their own sacs and placentas, which was normal. Their size was also pretty good.

"They look okay, don't they?" Yusuke asked, smiling. "I mean, they seem to like each other already. And nothing seems to be missing, right?"

Kurama suddenly frowned, like he'd noticed something off with the screen. He moved the wand around by himself when he realized what he was looking at.

"They're on top of each other," he suddenly said. "One of the babies seem to be breeched."

The technician peered at the screen, and agreed. "I think someone's been reading up a bit too much," she said.  
"It never hurts to be cautious," Kurama said with a shrug.

"Wait, what does that mean, breeched?" Yuna asked in a high, panicked voice. Kurama smiled and squeezed her hand.

"One of the babies has their head up," he explained, "as opposed to having its head down. It's quite normal, but it increases your chances of having to have a Caesarian section."  
"Is there anything I can do to change that?" Yuna asked the technician, who took screencaps of the ultrasound and took the wand back from Kurama. The wooshing sounds immediately stopped, making everyone blink at their absence.

"At this point, we can hope that the second baby will turn." She showed them a screen capture of the twins. "Luckily, the baby closest to the cervix seems to be in a normal position. If the second baby doesn't turn after the first is born, then the doctor may have to turn it himself."  
"How? From the stomach?" Yuna asked, frowning a bit. The idea of someone attempting to twist her stomach moments after one baby had shot out of her vagina sounded terrifying.  
"That, or the doctor will probably have to reach in and pull the baby out themselves."  
"EWWW!" Was the collective response from Yuna, Yusuke and Keiko at that revelation. Yuna was absolutely freaked out at the idea that someone would just...pull the baby out of her. She looked at her stomach for a moment and prayed that the baby would turn.

The technician laughed, but told them that for the moment, it was best to not worry about it yet. Then she asked if they wanted to find out the sex of the baby.

"Spoiler alert," she said to them. "They're fraternal twins."  
"What does that mean?" Yusuke asked, and Kurama was quick to supply the short answer.  
"They don't necessarily look exactly alike."

"I want to know!" Keiko suddenly exclaimed. Yusuke raised an eyebrow at her.  
"Really now," he said to her, and she nodded happily.

"I'm just so excited," she said with a smile. "I mean, it doesn't really matter what sex they are, but still! Tell me!"  
Yuna smiled at Keiko, ignoring the now all-too familiar pang that hit her square in the chest. The technician smiled as Yusuke kissed his wife's temple.

"Well," she said, taking another peek at the screen just to be sure. "Based on what I'm seeing, it looks like you're having a boy and a girl."  
Keiko gasped, her eyes filling with tears again as she laughed, hugging Yusuke, who seemed just as ecstatic.

"That's great news, you guys!" Yuna exclaimed from where she was now sitting up.

After the session, Yuna and Kurama were walking hand in hand back to the car. She was leaning close to Kurama, her hands in his pocket because she was freezing.  
"You're pretty quiet," Kurama pointed out as they reached the car. "Are you worried because one the the babies is breeched?"

"No," Yuna sighed, throwing off her scarf as Kurama turned on the heat. "I decided that I am only allowed to worry about it when I'm seven months pregnant. I...I'm actually feeling very guilty about something."  
"What is it?" Kurama asked, trying to sound casual, like he was just asking her about the weather. Yuna turned up the heat, which prickled at his skin and immediately melted off the ice in his fingers.  
"Well...I notice that every time Keiko talks about the babies or tells me how she's getting so excited about the babies, I get this weird pang in my chest. Like I'm angry with her for just a second. I hear it like she's trying to take something away from me," she said, sniffing back her tears. "I know they're her babies, but deep down, a part of me wishes that they were actually mine. I wish that earlier in that sonogram, I was listening to the heart beats of my own children. I hate that I have to give them up after everything. After a doctor sticks his hand up my vagina, I get nothing."

She was really crying now, keeping her hands in her face so Kurama wouldn't see her tears. Her face was already swollen enough. Kurama looked at her sadly, wishing he could say that she could be stronger than that. But even he couldn't bear it. The thought that the twins that he saw growing almost every day would be taken away from him after four months...he was just as bad as Yuna. What could he tell her?  
"Yuna," he said, rubbing his hand on her back. "You don't end up with nothing. You have a precious gift that Keiko and Yusuke have been hoping and praying for. You get to be the favorite aunt of twins. They will love you unconditionally, they will come to you when their parents are driving them up the wall. If you choose to be in their life, they will never be to far away. Yusuke and Keiko will get the late nights, the fatigue, the stress, the panic. Eventually these kids will hate them, as all kids hated their parents at least once in their lifetime. But not you."

Yuna knew she was right. She absolutely knew it, but it didn't really make her feel any better. She turned to Kurama and wrapped her arms around him, burying her face in his chest as he pulled her closer to him, as close as he could given that they were just sitting in the car. They were still in this entangled position when he felt something flutter against his ribcage. He jumped backwards, staring at Yuna's stomach.  
"Did you just-?" He asked, and Yuna looked at him in surprise.  
"I didn't do that," she said, the both of them immediately staring at her stomach like it was a completely foreign object. Kurama excitedly placed his hands on the spot where he'd felt it, Yuna's hand naturally landing next to his. They were in that position for a moment. Even Yuna mentioned that it might have just been gas bubbles. But then, it happened again. It was like a bubble had popped somewhere inside her stomach, and Kurama felt it with his hand. He gasped in surprise but laughed as the kicks continued, making Yuna giggle as well.

"Oh, the other baby's kicking too!" She exclaimed, bringing his hand to another side of her stomach, the both of them grinning like idiots at the feeling. Kurama leaned his forehead against hers.  
"We're screwed," she told him.  
"Worst surrogates ever," Kurama agreed, kissing her on the lips, his hands still on her stomach where the babies were making themselves known.


	5. Third Trimester

**Surrendering**

_Third Trimester_

By the time Yuna was seven months pregnant, Kurama found himself living in her apartment. There was no decision, no big announcement. One day he just found that all his stuff was there, perfectly integrated with hers. Neither of them talked about love, or what their relationship was. When they went out, they were easily mistaken for husband and wife, which Yuna was already too tired to correct. It was just easier that way, so why complicate things? While this was happening, Yuna realized that her stomach was almost getting to be too heavy for her. Pain constantly seared through her lower back, no matter how much Kurama massaged it, and even sitting had become a chore. Plus, she kept having to pee again, which was horrible. It was the middle of December, but she found herself throwing off the covers in the evenings, trying to find a comfortable position, which seemed impossible.

One evening, a few days shy of January, Yuna and Kurama found themselves on the couch. Yuna was reading one of her pregnancy books with her head on Kurama's lap, the most comfortable she had been in the last few weeks. Kurama was reading a book as well, his hand resting on the spot on Yuna's stomach where one of the babies was kicking. It was like a little game, the baby seemed to try to find where Kurama's hand was and kicked it incessantly. The other baby seemed to be asleep.

"Listen to this," Yuna said, advancing one chapter in the book. "In the seventh month, your babies will now double in size in preparation for their birth. With the uterus persistently growing and stretching as your twins gain in size and weight, each symptom becomes amplified. Ligament pain and pressure of the uterus are increasing. Frequent urination is making a comeback. Edema can be causing swollen extremities. Fatigue is getting worse and if you don't already have them, hemorrhoids will likely make an appearance."

"That sounds horrifying," Kurama said, leaning forward to look at the page.

"Will you still want to live here even if I have swollen limbs, a flabby stomach and giant breasts?" She asked him, looking up at his bright green eyes. He smiled and kissed the top of her forehead.  
"You're more beautiful than you give yourself credit for," he said. "Plus, I happen to like the state of your breasts at the moment. It's interesting."

"Yeah, tell yourself that when they start leaking," Yuna told him, jumping as a sudden pain hit her on her side. Kurama asked if she was okay and she nodded, putting the book aside. It was just one of those things that come with an expanding uterus.

"Dr. Kawamura scheduled your appointments every two weeks now," Kurama noted. "You're carrying twins, so there's a higher chance that you may deliver earlier."

Yuna no longer responded, as she had fallen asleep on his lap. Kurama smiled and rubbed his hand against her belly again, as if telling the twins to go to sleep as well.

Kurama found himself asleep on the couch hours later. He'd adjusted his position so his head was against the back of the couch, Yuna's head was now on his stomach. He checked the time and it was two in the morning. Wondering why on earth he was awake already, he felt his phone vibrating on the couch next to him. It was Kuwabara, and knowing the man, it could be about anything from a meteor about to hit the planet to something cute that his cat did. He picked up the call.

"Hello?" He asked politely.

"Dude, you have to come to the house, Yukina's water broke and she needs someone to deliver the baby," he said quickly, and in the background he actually heard Yukina's repressed screams.

"Why can't you take her to the hospital?" Kurama asked, rubbing his eyes. He may know a thing or two about babies, but he didn't know why he suddenly became the expert on childbirth.  
"Because according to her, she's past that," Kuwabara said. "Hurry!"

Then he hung up. Yuna, needing to pee, was already awake, slowly making her way to the bathroom. Kurama quickly fixed himself up and walked slowly to the bathroom door.  
"Uhm...I'll be going out for a bit," he said, and she emerged from the bathroom to give him an odd look. "At 2am?" she asked.

"Yes, it seems Yukina is about to give birth, and she can no longer go to the hospital," Kurama explained. "You're welcome to come, if you like."  
Thinking that it would be good for her to see before she gives birth, Yuna nodded.

A few minutes later, they were in Yukina and Kuwabara's living room. Kuwabara had apparently also invited Yusuke and Keiko to join in the festivities. Shizuru and Hiei were there as well. No sooner had Kurama and Yuna entered did Kuwabara emerge from the bedroom and go straight to his redhead friend.  
"THANK GOD," he said, placing his hand on Kurama's shoulders. "I have no idea what the hell I'm supposed to do."

"And you think he does?" Hiei spat from the windowsill he was sitting in. Yuna sank into the couch with Keiko as Kuwabara turned to him.  
"Will you shut up? I don't remember inviting you here!" Kuwabara exclaimed, but Kurama calmed him down.  
"Let me go in to see her," he said, following the man into the bedroom. Yukina was sitting up on top of the covers with her enormous belly, looking relatively calm for someone who was supposed to be past the point of a hospital. As a contraction hit, she shut her eyes and gripped Kuwabara's hand firmly, the most sound she was making muted by clamping her lips together.

"Yukina, sweetie, it's okay if you want to scream," Keiko said, having followed Kurama inside and patting her leg. Yukina assured her friend she was fine as Kurama checked her cervix.  
"Oh my-" then he turned to Kuwabara. "How long as she been having contractions?"  
"An hour or two," Kuwabara said with a shrug. "Her water broke when we were sleeping."  
"She's ten centimeters dilated," he pointed out. "She has to start pushing...right now. Keiko, can you get some sheets? Kuwabara, I'm going to need you to hold her hand."  
"Yuna!" Yukina suddenly exclaimed in the middle of a contraction. "She has to see this!"

The girl in question was brought in, along with Yusuke. Shizuru had opted not to see her niece or nephew shooting out of her sister-in-law's vagina, thank you very much. Kazuma and Keiko held Yukina's hands, helping her up as Kurama asked her to push.

"OH MY GOD, WHAT IS THAT?!" Yusuke exclaimed, seeing something peeking out Yukina's cervix.

"That's part of the baby's head," Kurama explained. "We still have a few more pushes to go, Yukina. Aaaand push!"

This time, Yukina actually screamed, a bloodcurdling sound of terror that she seemed to have reserved especially for the occasion. Yuna actually grabbed Yusuke's arm in fear as he continued to stare at the foreign object Kurama was coaxing out of the tiny girl. Yukina collapsed backwards into the bed, taking deep breaths and leaning against Kuwabara for strength. Kurama asked her to push again.

"STOP IT KURAMA, IT'S NOT HAPPENING!" This time it was Yuna who had screamed alongside Yukina. The sooner this had happened the sooner the baby's head popped out, the rest of the body sliding out in one last push. Both Yuna and Yusuke looked just about ready to throw up or pass out at what had transpired. Kurama was beaming as Yukina and Kuwabara's daughter cried out. The umbilical cord was cut, and soon the baby was in Yukina's arms, the new parents glowing with happiness at the arrival of the little girl.

"We'll give you guys a minute," Keiko said, kissing her friend's cheek as they all rejoined Hiei and Shizuru in the living room.

"Well?" Shizuru asked, chewing her nicotine gum.

"Go in and see for yourself," Kurama told her with a smile. "You too," he said, this time directing it to Hiei, who obliged.

"That...was the scariest thing I had ever seen," Yuna said, sitting on the couch next to Keiko. "I mean...how, how, how was Yukina able to do that? That baby was huge!"  
She seemed to be in some state of shock, which Kurama thought was quite funny.

"I think she will need to have reconstruction surgery after," Yusuke said, shaking his head. "Like a vaginaplasty or something."  
"But they looked so happy after, didn't they?" Keiko asked, looking at the direction of the room with a smile on her face. Kurama had to agree.

"No way," Yuna said, crossing her arms over her gigantic chest, resting it on her swollen belly as she leaned back against the couch. "These babies will have to stay in here because I am NOT doing that."  
"I second the motion," Yusuke agreed. Kurama and Keiko just smiled at the two and chalked it up to tiredness.

By four in the morning, Hina Kazuma was asleep on Yukina's side and everyone had gone home. Yuna insisted that Kurama sleep beside her on the bed because honestly, that whole experience had terrified her. The redhead smiled and kissed her lips, kissing the top of her stomach as well.

"Don't worry," he said to her. "I guarantee yours will be worse."

About a week after Hina was born, Yuna was given her maternity leave from the preschool. Honestly, the entire experience of seeing Yukina give birth gave Yuna more panic than she'd initially thought. What if she simply couldn't push that hard? Had one of her babies turned already? What if she didn't make it to the hospital? People died of childbirth all the time...would she be one of them? These thoughts, the never ending kicking from the twins and the immense pain she was getting from her own body was overwhelming.

It was her last day, and she was just saying goodbye to the children when a sharp pain gripped at her sides, like someone was trying to squeeze her stomach. Suddenly the pain her back intensified, and she felt her legs cramping up a little.  
"What's wrong Miss Yuna?" Maiko asked, as worried about his favorite teacher as ever.

"Oh, it's nothing, sweetie," Yuna assured him, but the pain she felt told her otherwise. "Uhm...can someone call for Miss Nami? I think I have to go to the hospital," she said, trying her best not to scream out in pain in front of the kids. Her vision was blurring, and the last thing she saw before she passed out were bright white dots.

Yuna opened her eyes and easily recognized the bright whites of the hospital. Her hands immediately touched her stomach, as if afraid that she was no longer pregnant. She was. Kurama jumped up from wherever he had been sitting to take her hand.  
"Yuna," he said. She turned to her head to him, and she could see Keiko as well, looking worried. She could hear beeping somewhere in the room, and wires were attached to her stomach.  
"What happened?" she asked them. "I'm still pregnant."  
"Dr. Kawamura said you were having Braxton Hicks contractions," Keiko explained. "False labor. But you must have been stressed, because you passed out."  
"Everything's fine," Kurama told her. "They'll keep you here for a couple of hours, just to make sure you don't develop a fever or start vomiting. But you have to be on bed rest, at least for another month or until the babies are born."  
"O-okay," Yuna said, wondering why on earth she was suddenly so tired. Her eyelids fluttered and she saw Yusuke coming into the room. Kurama kissed the side of her temple.  
"Go to sleep. We'll be home soon," he told her, and she did.

Preeclampsia. That was the official name for what Yuna had. Dr. Kawamura assured her that this happened a lot with twin pregnancies, and a few weeks of bed rest would do her just fine. Kurama had taken a leave of absence from work as well, just to make sure that Yuna would be okay. While she was lying down and stressing out, he had been going around the house, packing the bag she would need at the hospital, planning the routes they could take, just in case. He was a cautious planner, but this was the kind of planning that calmed him down. She lay in bed next to him, her hand on her belly, humming a song.

"How are you feeling?" Kurama asked.  
"A little worried," she confessed. "I'm almost eight months pregnant, you know."  
"I know," Kurama said, kissing her shoulder. "Time flies by so fast."  
"Then you will finally realize that you're a pregnophile," she told him, giggling. Kurama propped up his head with his hand.  
"Now why do you keep calling me that?" He asked her. "Do you really doubt how much I like you?"  
Yuna shrugged. "I don't know," she confessed to him. "Maybe I'm scared that you're only here for me because I'm pregnant with Yusuke and Keiko's baby. That after this, you, them...everything will go back to the way it was. That terrifies me, because I can never imagine going back to that kind of life."

Kurama pushed himself up and kissed her on the lips. "Never," he promised her. "You know your pregnancy is just my excuse to remain close to you? I...I love you, Yuna."  
There. That was all the confession they needed to get all that confusion and avoidance over with. Let Kurama be the one who said it first. Yuna's eyes widened for a moment, her heart actually skipping a beat.

"I-I love you too," she stammered, leaning forward and giving him a kiss.

With only one week to go until her eighth month, Botan figured it was high time that she throw Keiko a baby shower. Not wanting Yuna to feel left out, Keiko asked if they could have it in her bedroom. Which they did. Botan and Shizuru hung up streamers and decorations while Yuna assembled party favors in bed. Yukina brought Hina with her while she made enough food for a small army. when Keiko arrived, they played games, ate cake, cooed over the sight of Hina yawning and tried to guess when Yuna was going to give birth. At the shower, she'd had a run of false labor, which had put everyone on edge for a moment until they wandered into the topic. At this point they were all sitting in a circle, Yukina and Yuna on the bed with Hina asleep in between them, Keiko and Botan on chairs at the opposite side, their feet propped up. Shizuru was talking to someone on the phone in the living room.

"I for one hope it will be soon," Botan exclaimed, "I can't wait to meet those twins!"

"And I can't wait to be out of bed again," Yuna sighed, leaning backwards. "Keiko, you are so lucky you don't have to do this."  
"Are you kidding?" Keiko asked, shaking her head. "I would do anything to be in your position right now." She sighed putting her feet back on the floor. "It feels so weird to not be so involved in this process."

"Oh Keiko," Yuna said with a smile, her hands on her stomach. "This is nothing. It's just nine months. You get the twins for the rest of your life. You just have to wait a little while longer."  
"Aww, cuddle party!" Botan said, and everyone climbed into the bed with Yuna. Yukina mentioned that the babies should hear them now, and Keiko placed her hand over Yuna's stomach.

"Hey kids," she said softly, giggling at the feeling of the babies kicking against her hand. "I can't wait to meet you both."

A few weeks later, on a rainy March day, Yuna was on her feet again and bigger than ever. Her back felt like it could break at any second, if the babies didn't kick it out of commission first. Kurama had gone to have breakfast with his mom for the morning, and Yuna had been left alone for the first time in a long time. "Which is awesome, because his breathing was starting to annoy me," Yuna told the twins as she awkwardly walked to the kitchen for a glass of water. She jumped when thunder clapped behind her, and lighting shot across the sky.

"What the heck," she said, looking out her window. The sky was incredibly dark and rain was falling in the buckets. "It's a storm," she said, shivering in a knit sweater as the skirt on her floor length dress swept across her bare feet. "Guys, we gotta stay in bed," she said, shaking her head as the went into the bedroom. Although she could walk around again, Yuna realized it didn't take long before she wanted to lie down again. She had just settled into bed, closing her eyes and humming when a sharp pain suddenly hit her. She girt her teeth, and the pain passed quickly.

"What was that?" She looked down at her stomach. It may have been just another round of false labor but this felt...different. Getting a little worried, she was about to grab her phone to call Kurama when he burst through the door. She screamed and he looked at her in surprise, as if wondering what was happening.  
"Kurama!" Yuna exclaimed. "I think...I think I-"  
"I know," he said, coming forward to kiss her on the lips. "I love you too."  
"Oh my god!" She said as water came trickling on to the bed. Kurama was currently kissing her neck and looked at her in surprise. "Really?" He asked, "Already?"  
"No, dude!" She exclaimed, pushing him off the bed. "My water just broke, I-I-I have to go to the hospital."

They made it to the hospital in no time at all. Kurama was soaking wet because he'd insisted Yuna take the only umbrella there, while she was cursing at every contraction that came her way. Dr. Kawamura was already on her way, so Yuna was brought into one of the rooms,holding Kurama's hand as another contraction hit her. She took deep breaths as Kurama easer her beck into the pillows.

"That was good, love," he said, kissing the back of her hand. "I'll go see what's keeping the doctor. Yusuke and Keiko should be on their way."  
Yuna smiled and nodded as Kurama exited the room for a moment. Yuna barely had two minutes alone to process her current situation when Keiko burst into the room, a doctor not far behind her.

"Yuna!" She exclaimed, rushing to hug her as the unfamiliar doctor checked something on the fetal monitor behind them. "Oh my god, I'm so excited this is happening! Are you alright?"

Her answer came at once when Yuna had another contraction. Keiko helped her along, saying soothing words and holding her hand. Once the pain had passed, the doctor cleared her throat.  
"Yuna?" she asked, and the two women looked up at her.  
"Dr. Kawamura got trapped in the storm," she said. "My name's Dr. Bei Fong, and you're ready to go to the delivery room now."  
"No, no wait," Yuna said immediately. "I can't go into labor! We don't know if the second baby's turned since last week, Kurama's not here, and Yusuke is-aaaarrrgh!" She bent forward again, her stomach stopping her from saying anything else. Keiko took her hand and looked at her friend.  
"Yuna," she said, "You can do this. Kurama will be here with Yusuke any minute now...hopefully. I'm going to be there in the room with you, and everything will be okay. Okay? Do you trust me?"  
Yuna nodded and threw her arms around Keiko. "You're my best friend, you know that?" she asked the girl who smiled and hugged her back.  
"You're mine too."

Kurama sneezed in the lobby as he spotted the man he was looking for. Yusuke looked a little lost, and extremely worried. At least ten heads turned sharply towards the man who was currently spreading his germs through the hospital, Yusuke was included.

"Dude, what the fuck happened to you?" Yusuke asked, coming towards Kurama.

"I forgot the second umbrella," he said sheepishly as Yusuke threw his jacket over his friend. "Christ man," Yusuke said, the both of them walking to the heater.

"Why are you here?" Kurama asked his friend, pulling back his wild, red hair out of his face.

"I'm here because I don't want to go in there," he said, indicating the hallway where Yuna and Keiko were. "I'm fucking terrified I might mess up. I'm not exactly the best dad material, given that I barely finished high school, drink a lot and only quit smoking three months ago. I mean, these are twins. They're coming, Kurama. I mean, facing Toguro or Sensui was _nothing_ compared to this fear I have now. Fuck."

Kurama pulled the jacket closer to himself, wondering slightly if he was going to get sick out of this. He was probably going to.

"You know you looked like a worried dad a second ago, back there," Kurama pointed out, smiling. "And this is happening. In a few hours, you're going to get there."

He sneezed again. Yup. He was definitely going to get sick after this. "We're all rooting for you, by the way."

"URAMESHI, GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE RIGHT NOW!" Keiko's voice boomed through the hall. Kurama and Yusuke turned their heads just in time to see Yuna being brought to the delivery room, panting and holding Keiko's hand.

"Here we go," Kurama said with a smile, taking off Yusuke's jacket and following the girls into the room.

The next few minutes were all a blur. Yuna thought she'd passed out from a combination of fear and pain. She would remember blood and screaming and many bright lights. She wouldn't remember how she got into a birthing room. She would barely remember the doctor saying, "The head is crowning, it's time to start pushing."

"But what about the other baby?"

"We'll see what happens, you need to push," Dr. Bei Fong said, peeking under the sheet. Kurama was standing beside Yuna, holding her hand and helping her along. Keiko had a hand tucked under Yuna's leg while Yusuke had the other.

Yuna looked to Kurama for help and he said, "They're coming, Yuna."

Then she felt some part of herself tearing away as it pushed lower. The pain had a life of it's own as it twisted and stretched, straining against her. She was growing weak and her body was doing most of the pushing for her.

"Yes!" Yusuke cried as Kurama took over on his side. He moved over to Dr. Bei Fong, no longer fazed at what he was looking at. "I can see the head! Our baby has hair!" She tensed up and pushed once more, silently, until she heard the doctor say, "Congratulations on baby number one," She held up a tiny baby, covered in blood and fluid.

Yuna suddenly remembered one of the things Kurama told her. "They will love you unconditionally, they will come to you when their parents are driving them up the wall. If you choose to be in their life, they will never be to far away."

Then the room was filled with a baby's loud cries. There was a moment of wonderful awe as Keiko lay eyes with her son for the first time. He was there. Measured, weighed and declared perfect, and in Keiko's arms in less then a minute. Standing to the side with Yusuke, she cradled him in her arms, his tiny hand wrapped around her finger.

"Friends," Dr. Bei Fong said, calling the couple back to the table. "I feel that baby number two is about to coming out."

"No! Nooooo! Please, I don't want to do this anymore!" Yuna cried, throwing her head back and pulling Kurama towards herself. "Please, please, I don't want to..."  
"No backing out now, love," Kurama said, kissing the top of her head.

"Is the baby still breeched?" Yuna asked the doctor, and she shook her head.  
"This'll be quick and smooth if you start pushing at the next contraction," Dr. Bei Fong told her as Keiko came to her side, with Yusuke not far behind.

"We're here for you," Keiko said.

And then everything kind of melted away after that.

Yuna was aware that she was in the hospital. She was aware of the room around her, and of the emptiness around her. It was like she was right back to where she'd started, by herself, in bed with nothing. Tears were coming and gushing out of her eyes uncontrollably, with her hands around her much flatter stomach. Somewhere in the hospital, Yusuke and Keiko were holding their twin babies, laughing and being happy while she...she was here.

Suddenly, two warm arms wrapped around her, filling her with certain warmth. Kurama pulled her closer to him, his face buried in her neck, kissing her while she cried.

"I just," She said to him. "I just need a minute."  
"Take all the time you need," he whispered, closing his eyes and trying to stop his tears too.


	6. Epilogue

**Surrendering**  
_Epilogue_

**Miss Advised**  
2012-03

_So the twins turned a year old today. I can't believe it's been a year since we all went through that craaazy roller coaster ride with the pregnancy and stuff. Anyway, Kurama and I thought it would be a nice, godparent-y thing to host Yuki and Masa's party at Kurama's parents' house in the suburbs. A word of advice, don't host a party in your husband's parents' house. Kids have a tendency of sticking to every visible surface, including the bottom of your in-law's neighbor's swimming pool. _

_Anyway, the party was quite fun. It was a small affair, just the Urameshis, the Kuwabaras, Botan (and her new boyfriend Koenma!), Shizuru and Hiei. Hina and the twins loooved decorating the cake Yukina had painstakingly baked for them. The icing somehow made a detour all over their clothes than the cake, though. The guys got a kick out of the trampoline Kurama hired out. If you want to host a kid's birthday party like we did, it's important to remember that the children are only a year old and will probably never remember the affair. So it's best to let the adults have fun too. I'll post more when I finish uploading the pictures-this party got me so tired, and I've been so tired lately. It's weird because I haven't really been this tired since-_

"Finished writing that blog entry?" Kurama asked, emerging from the shower in a burst of steam. His towel was wrapped around his waist, and his upper half was bare as he kissed his wife's shoulder hungrily. Yuna laughed and told him that yes, the blog was done for now. Kurama changed quickly into his pajamas while Yuna went under the covers, her hands resting on a familiar spot on her stomach.

"Five months and it still looks kinda flat," she said to Kurama, rubbing the slim surface of stretched skin. "You think this is normal?"

"After everything," Kurama said, kissing her, "I think we needed a bit of normal."


End file.
